Frequently Asked Questions

1. How do I become a research participant?

Recruitment to the study follows an internal clinical review and is unfortunately, limited given available resources. All residents invited to participate in the research either live at the Northwood long-term care Halifax site or in a Northwood retirement living apartment and receive home support services from Northwood. Staff participants must work at Northwood and provide care to at least one resident using the technology. Administrators/managers also must work at Northwood. Unpaid caregivers invited to participate either live with or provide care to a Home Support client using the technology.

2. How many research participants are there?

135 Total Participants

50 Long Term Care residents

20 Northwood Staff

15 Northwood Administrators/Managers

25 Home Support Clients

25 Family Caregivers

3. What are the Study Eligibility criteria for older adults?

In long-term care:

a. Residents who have a disability that impacts their ability to use an electronic device.

b. Residents with speech capacity to activate and use the SMART technology solution.

c. Residents with the capacity to provide informed consent, as determined by the client making decisions on their own for other parts of their life and a demonstrated understanding of the study objectives and their participation.

In the home care setting:

a. Clients who have a disability that impacts their ability to use an electronic device.

b. Clients with speech capacity to activate and use the SMART technology solution.

c. Clients with the capacity to provide informed consent, as determined by the client making decisions on their own for other parts of their life and a demonstrated understanding of the study objectives and their participation.

d. Clients with stable Internet access at their place of residence.

4. What themes will you be exploring in the research?

Research participants participate in interviews, surveys and assessments at baseline, 6 months and 12 months. Themes include:

LTC Residents:

Independence & autonomy
Well-being and quality of life
Experiences with technology
How SMART technology affects care

LTC Administrators/Managers:

The current approach to care planning around independence, autonomy and well-being
Rules and regulations around technologies
Impact of the SMART technology
Changes in care planning around independence
autonomy and well-being

LTC Staff:

Well-being and quality of life
The impact of the technology on residents in the study
Anticipated challenges or barriers to residents using the technology
Changes in residents since they started using the technology
Wants or needs to further support residents use of technology
Concerns about privacy in relation to residents’ use of the technology
Anything else about resident’s use of the technology they feel is important.

Home Care Clients:

Independence and autonomy
Well-being and quality of life
Experience with technology
Experience of using the SMART technology
How SMART technology affects their care

Unpaid Caregivers in Home Care:

Well-being and quality of life
The Impact of the technology on clients in the study
Challenges or barriers to clients using the technology
Changes in residents since they started using the technology
Wants or needs to further support residents use of technology
Concerns about privacy in relation to client’s use of the technology
Anything else about the client’s use of the technology they feel is important.

5. Where can I buy the technology and how much does it cost?

The SMARTech Service provides each resident with a Google Home Nest Hub Max purchased from a local retailer and a customized Novalte Managed Service for Independence Solution. You can learn more about Novalte at https://novalte.ca/

6. What can an older adult do with this technology?

The Google Assistant can help an older person search the internet, keep a calendar, play audiobooks and games, listen to music, radio and news, set timers, alarms and reminders, get recipe ideas, turn smart devices on and off, build lists, and make free audio/video calls. New ways to use the Google Assistant are coming out everyday.

Novalte has connected its Emitto to the Google Assistant so an older person can use their voice to move their bed up and down, control their lights and things they plug in, turn the TV on/off and change channels independently.

7. How does the SMARTech Service help older people to age well?

Each resident and home support client enrolled in the study will receive a printed Health and Wellness Plan that summarizes the concerns and priorities they share with us. This Plan also captures the goals and actions they told us they need to take to enhance their well-being, independence, social engagement and healthy aging. An Occupational Therapist and a Rehabilitation Assistant will help them use their technology to achieve the goals they set in this Plan. You can learn more about the Age Care Technology Assessment that we use to build the Health and Wellness Plan at https://agecaretechnologies.org/about/

8. I want to learn more about Northwood’s innovation journey. Who can I talk to?

Northwood has a long history of innovation. You can reach out to Wayne Tucker, Director of Research, Innovation & Quality at Northwood at 902 454-3829 or at wayne.tucker@nwood.ns.ca.

9. Where do I go for help in using the technology?

If you need help to remember the commands for your Google Nest Hub Max or Emitto Hub you can use the poster created by Novalte. Find them on our page.

If you are a participant living at Northwood, you can contact the Rehab Team for help with your technology.

If you are a home support participant and you are having trouble with your Emitto Hub, you can contact Novalte directly. You may need support to physically reconnect your equipment during this process, we suggest you schedule an appointment at a time when you have an attendant or family member present. (833) 230-2978 ext. 1002. You can also email Novalte at support@novalte.ca

Posters

Back (Funders)

Next Page (Contact)