Several UWaterloo professors are leading research projects for AGE-WELL, a research network exploring how new technologies and services can improve the health and well- being of older adults and their caregivers.
These include mathematics professor Jesse Hoey, who is studying sensor technology. His project’s first application looks at how sensors can gather information to track and prevent wandering or problematic nighttime behaviour.
At Applied Health Sciences, Assistant Professor Joon Lee and Professor John Hirdes (Public Health and Health Systems) are running two projects that look at how data from the interRAI home and community care assessment systems can be combined with data from new wearable devices. Professor Hirdes’ project is monitoring the movements of people with dementia and their caregivers, while Assistant Professor Lee is focusing on falls prevention.
Professor Paul Stolee (Public Health and Health Systems), pictured right, is overseeing this and several other projects, while also conducting his own research around how these new health technologies can be more quickly put into practice.
“New technologies offer many possible benefits for older people, but decisions need to be made about which technologies should be approved, how to monitor their use, and how to pay for them,” says Paul. “An efficient policy framework is key to making sure our seniors can benefit from all the new technologies becoming available.”
