Abstract
Smart Homes (SH) technology, as an example of ambient, assisted living technologies, is designed to aid house inhabitants in carrying out their everyday living tasks, resulting in a higher quality of life while maintaining their privacy. A SH system is often outfitted with a combination of interconnected software and hardware components to monitor the living area by capturing and interpreting the resident’s behavior. As a result, the system may notify the resident of potentially hazardous conditions and take steps on his behalf to ensure his pleasure. The current study will focus on healthcare gadgets in smart homes and how they are employed in telemedicine. In particular, the paper will investigate the benefits and significance of technology, as well as provide instances of how the technologies have been applied. It will rely on essential technological factors such as efficiency, equality, and safety. Finally, it will investigate the limitations and issues connected with data management, as well as future developments.
Summary
Connected technology has become less mysterious and more prevalent. According to Wang (2018), an average smart house will have roughly 500 smart gadgets by 2022, ranging from smart lighting and smart bins to integrated healthcare devices. Smart home health monitoring solutions, in particular, provide several options. Some say that nine-to-five health care may soon be obsolete. Individual smart health devices, such as smartwatches and activity trackers, are not yet capable of monitoring our health holistically (Thapliyal, Khalus & Labrado, 2017). New solutions are needed, and several are being developed right now. Experts believe that these solutions should be built on interoperability, which allows devices to interact with one another.
Benefits and Importance of Smart Home Devices in Telemedicine
The growth of the older part of the population has resulted in a massive increase in demand for home care, especially among those with chronic illnesses. As a result, healthcare costs continue to climb, putting financial strain on medical systems (Wimo et al., 2017). Shifting the focus from formal care in hospitals to informal care in private homes is a rather efficient way to reduce these expenditures. According to Skilbeck et al., 2018, the majority of persons in need of care choose less invasive informal care. The prevailing consensus is that informal home care is low-cost. However, statistics show that traditional informal care for many chronic diseases is not always less expensive than alternative forms of care offered in hospitals or care homes.
Smart Home (SH) technology seeks to improve people’s quality of life and guarantee that people can live comfortably and independently. SH technology is viewed as a means to lower living and care expenses while improving the quality of life for persons who require assistance. It has been used for a variety of applications, including energy conservation, security and safety, fall detection, light control, smoke and fire detection, and more, employing a variety of technologies, including video monitoring and smart planners (Malwade et al., 2018). SHs, which are outfitted with sensors, actuators, and ultimately cameras to capture various forms of data about the house and the people, can enable automatic systems or caregivers to regulate the environment on the residents’ behalf, forecast their activities, and follow their health state.
A Super Smart Home for the Aging Population
Aging in place is frequently considered in connection with smart homes. Technology can assist older persons in remaining independent and protected, therefore avoiding the arduous transition to formal care. Cox Communications launched its latest smart house in which every gadget is “smart” (Datta et al., 2018). A reliable internet connection is essential for their offering, and the firm also operates a network for other service providers. Not only is the equipment managed remotely, but also this Home Life has direct links to family members and health specialists. A person, for example, can do their therapy session remotely while receiving online live coaching from a physiotherapist (Malwade et al., 2018). Alternatively, the family who resides in another state can check in and out via their smartphone or tablet, ensuring that loved ones are always available if needed.
This super-smart home also includes a smart pill dispenser, a smart pot to water your plants, motion sensors for indoors and outdoors, and an automatic barcode scanner GeniCan that is attached to the trash can to scan discarded packaging and add the consumed items to the user’s shopping list. Many actions critical to independent living may be monitored in a contemporary smart home, and support is offered on an as-needed basis. If something is wrong, such as a person falling or failing to take their prescription, family members can be contacted right away. The individual living in the smart house, on the other hand, retains his or her liberty and sense of independence.
Chronic Disease Management at Home
New services are increasingly replacing the conventional healthcare paradigm, which depends on home visits by nurses, physicians, and therapists. Trapollo, a Cox Communications acquisition, has been exploring several remote healthcare solutions (Datta et al., 2018). The organization provides a variety of telehealth packages that use technology to link consumers with their healthcare team. If patients can manage their chronic diseases at home, there are several advantages—as long as it is done correctly. From a commercial standpoint, home care is far less expensive than hospital stays and relieves some of the strain on the United States already overburdened healthcare system.
Telemonitoring has greatly improved with the development of smart telehealth devices. The Scripps Translational Science Institute in La Jolla, California, reports on a 2017 study that found that telemonitoring of oxygen saturation, blood pressure, body temperature, and respiratory biometrics can considerably minimize re-admissions of persons with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (Wimo et al., 2017). Telemonitoring of fragile patients with numerous illnesses, on the other hand, may be more difficult and will almost certainly necessitate the use of appropriate support systems and protocols (Baillargeon et al., 2019). So far, technology targeting specific chronic diseases has gotten better reviews and has greater scientific backing.
Home technology, for example, has proven effective in the care of patients suffering from dementia. It is used for dementia reminders and to aid persons suffering from dementia through their everyday tasks (Wimo et al., 2017). COACH, a computerized device, may autonomously lead an older person with dementia through actions (such as hand washing) using voice and/or audio-video cues, decreasing the need for help. COACH may assess the condition of the work and determine whether a person requires a reminder and, if so, which one.
Barriers and Data Management Challenges
Limitations in doing full physical tests, technical issues, security breaches, and legislative impediments are examples of barriers and management challenges. Some detractors of telehealth worry that it would harm the continuity of care, claiming that online interactions are impersonal and unsafe since the virtual physician lacks the advantage of a thorough history and physical examination to help in diagnosis and treatment. Furthermore, it confronts several legal and regulatory challenges, including wide variances in laws, regulations, and practice norms.
Future Trends
According to Gurgu et al., 2019, the Smart Home Healthcare Market is estimated to grow at a 26.5 percent CAGR between 2020 and 2025. Because Internet of Things (IoT) devices are becoming more popular, smart home healthcare market companies are progressively releasing such goods. Along with this development is the possibility of providing healthcare services in a smart home. Improvements in AI and technology enable advances like videoconferencing physicians and online over-the-counter medicine shopping not only conceivable but also a realistic foundation for a self-care revolution. Smart homes will be primary care in the near future.
However, the ultimate promise of a smart home that provides care rests in detecting the specific health requirements of each resident in a house, from newborns to the elderly, and concurrently meeting those needs. Originally designed to warn homeowners of suspicious activities, linked home security technology has swiftly expanded to protect both family and professional caregivers connected to aging seniors from rising health risks.
References
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