Faced with challenges on many sides, memory care operators are integrating technology into their operations, from artificial intelligence to virtual reality and other tools.
“It really streamlines the process and gives you immediate, actionable information to engage with the resident, making it a more personal experience, while also allowing the staff to engage without having a whole lot of planning time behind it,” said HDG Senior Vice President of Quality Heather Haberhern during the recent BRAIN conference in Chicago.
Operators including Grace Management, Vi, and Health Dimensions Group (HDG) have all taken steps to revolutionize aspects of their operations to better support resident care outcomes and improve efficiency among staff.
How operators are using memory care tech
In the last four years, memory care operators have invested in infrastructure capable of supporting tech platforms like Amazon’s (NYSE: AMZ) Alexa smart device and fall-monitoring systems.
Grace Management recently deployed multiple tools to support its memory care operations, using iN2L as an engagement platform to gather resident health and lifestyle data, according to Grace Management National Director of Memory Care and Life Enrichment Ashlea Smalley.
The shift from physical record keeping to tracking resident personal histories to inform programming has helped revolutionize its memory care offerings, Smalley said during a BRAIN panel in Chicago.
Grace Management is also piloting a new tool that helps track behavioral expressions of memory care residents. The goal is to better equip caregivers with new tools with which to help residents who may have a need but lack a way to express it..
“This has been revolutionary for us as far as gathering data,” Smalley said.
Maple Grove, Minnesota-based Grace Management operates 60 communities nationwide.
Haberhern highlighted how HDG is using the passive monitoring fForesight platform with in-room technology to monitor resident health data such as gait speed and stride time. This has given HDG staff better insight into resident behavior and offered an opportunity to provide more tailored care.
The results have allowed staff to provide more personalized care and make interventions sooner, Haberhern said.
“It gives the caregivers an indicator of risk to say this person is at greater risk of falling, and by learning from the residents, it will help us identify risks early on so that we can intervene,” Haberhern added.
Minneapolis, Minnesota-based HDG operates 55 communities nationwide.
Vi has for years now used immersive VR experiences for memory care residents to provide new experiences and spur resident engagement at a high acuity level of care. Residents are able to take virtual visits to various culturally significant locations.
There are çcçmonthly themes or a series of programs we’re doing,” said Vice President of Living Well at Vi, Tony Galvan, during the panel.
Vi has reported an increase in programming and activities among residents taking part.
Galvan added that it’s up to all senior living operators to “validate the effectiveness” of bringing tech solutions to bear in operations, with care staff reporting improvements in specific areas of “physical, mental, cognitive well-being, and quality of life,” along with a dip in resident depression scores.
Improving health and wellness offerings in memory care
Technology has also improved initial assessments of memory care residents for HDG, Haberhern said, along with personalizing care, with the help of AI-supported models like TSO Life.
HDG personalizes resident health and lifestyle preferences at intake with the software as opposed to physically keeping notes. The AI-supported model also sends out personalized newsletters to residents that share their lifestyle preferences.
AI-supported tools, from popular language generative models to health models, create social engagement or improve resident care through in-room technology and more. AI use by team members helps Vi staff save time and create better workflow, Galvan said.
“I think these platforms are really shifting from hobbies, interests, what you did in the past to being a little more forward-facing,” Galvan said. “You see us thematically talking about the same things: This idea of care and engagement coming together and it’s about delivering that person-centered experience for our residents.”
To create programming for communities, operators must first understand that customer preferences for senior living are changing. Grace Management found success in personalizing programming based on shared interests and analyzing community trends with a new data collection and analysis capabilities
However, getting residents to accept new technology in their units or getting staff on board with using a new system can be a tough task.
Operators can break through those barriers by showing the useful power of the system in question, with direct communication with staff and residents, Haberhern said. By communicating directly with families and residents, an operator can promote residents opting into new technology, including in-room tech systems aimed at identifying resident health trends.
“Depending on the population that you have working with you, they’re very skeptical of technology, and how much it’s actually going to help them or be more work for them to do,” Haberhern added.
