Incorporation of Information Technology into Assisted Health Care: An Empirical Study

1. Incorporation of Information Technology into Assisted Health Care: An Empirical Study Michelle Delmonico and Bruce White

2. Overview • IS/IT pervades almost everything • In healthcare, IT does ‘everything’ from electronic health records to computer guided surgery. • This paper investigates technology adoption in assisted living healthcare facilities.

3. The authors • The main author is Michelle (Merrill) Delmonico. At the time this was written, Michelle was an MBA student at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, CT. Michelle has worked in healthcare. • The secondary author is Bruce White, Professor of Information Systems Management at Quinnipiac University. Michelle started this study as an independent study at Quinnipiac

4. The study • The authors developed a questionnaire that was sent to over 100 assisted living facilities in Pennsylvania and Connecticut. • The questionnaire was distributed by paper / standard mail

5. The study continued • We found early on that assisted living facilities might be in the ‘backwater’ of IT adoption and use. Where a similar survey of acute care hospitals was distributed using ‘SurveyMonkey’, we found few assisted living facilities with websites or with easily findable e-mail addresses. • Thus, the paper surveys were distributed addressed to ‘administrator’

6. Questionnaire • The questionnaire had 15 questions. • Some questions: • Does your facility utilize electronic health records? • What types of monitoring and sensor devices are utilized? • Do residents have wireless emergency response devices? • Does your facility have any robotic assistance

7. Questions - continued • Does your facility have any web based software programs to enable providers, caregivers and/or family members to monitor residents? • How important is adapting new or advanced technology to your facility? • How frequently is the pursuit of advanced or new technologies discussed at board/management facility meetings?

8. Questions - continued • Does your facility have a strategic plan for implementing advanced or new technologies to improve resident care? • For how long has your facility planned and budgeted financial resources for the purchase of advanced or new technologies? • What do you perceive to be the biggest barriers in implementing aging service Technologies?

9. Questions - continued • What strategies have you employed to overcome the barriers to implementing aging service technologies? • Are there any questions / suggestions / concerns about implementing various technologies into assisted living facilities?

10. Our Results

11. Use of Sensing Devices

14. Budgeting for Technology

15. Barriers to Implementing Technology

16. Implementation Strategies

17. Summary • Positive: • High adoption rate of various sensors • Anti-wandering doors • Wireless devices (pendants, etc.)

18. Negatives • 87% have not looked at electronic health records • 76% do not have strategic plans for implementing technology • 38% have NEVER budgeted for information technologies

19. As expected • 71% say ‘cost’ is the biggest barrier to bringing technology solutions in to assisted living facilities • 52% have ‘anti-wandering’ doors • (Many of these results are in general agreement with other studies, include CAST – the Center for Aging Services Technologies)

20. Observations • This was an initial study • We selected two eastern states • We had a fairly low response rate • We found it hard to get the surveys to the right persons and to have them fill it out • We think this does establish an early ‘baseline’ and that assisted living facilities will continue to adopt technologies as the ‘baby boomers’ need care.

21. Directions • We would like to try this again – with more states and more respondents • We would also like to interview technology adoption leaders in assisted living facilities for a ‘qualitative’ view of the information

22. Questions, Comments, Suggestions?

23. Thank you!!!