 |
|
 |
 |
|
Louisville firm cares to share
CaringFamily's technology links families, elders
|
By Matt Branaugh, Camera Business Writer
January 27, 2005
To Michael Williams, the technological divide between older and younger generations boils down to this: Elders prefer pen and paper. Younger folks prefer cell phones, e-mail and Internet.
As society becomes increasingly intertwined in all things wired and wireless, the ability to overlook the elderly only grows easier.
That phenomenon poses significant problems, he says.
"In this most connected age, we're disconnecting the elderly, leaving them alone," Williams says. "And isolation and loneliness of the elderly kills them."
A small Louisville company Williams helped start several years ago is trying to bring those generations closer together, all with the goal of improving the quality of life for graying populations.
Ironically, the solution involves technology; an Internet-based system involving a "digital mailbox" developed at CaringFamily, the 10-employee business founded by Williams and fellow tech veterans Paul Davoust and David Taenzer.
But the approach, the company says, tries to make the gadgetry nearly invisible. Rather than force seniors to navigate a personal computer or learn the intricacies of a cell phone or personal digital assistant, CaringFamily says its system delivers them simplicity while respecting the electronic preferences of their younger relatives.
An estimated 44.4 million American adults provide some type of care-giving to an elder, according to a MetLife Foundation-sponsored study released last April.
"There's this overwhelming sense of frustration families have because we hear in society today that technology is going to solve all problems," says Davoust, CaringFamily's president and chief executive officer. "Solutions with high-tech assume 'We will change your behavior.' But our assumption is, if you work with the habits and behaviors your customers already have, you're ahead of the game."
CaringFamily's concept, currently undergoing field trials, works like this: Inside the elder's home sits the digital mailbox ? a printer and scanner that acts somewhat like a fax machine but at a much higher level of quality.
The device uses a phone line, during off-peak hours if preferred, receiving messages, photos, articles and other materials sent by family members. Font size and color are customized to the elder's preference.
Conversely, the elder can send out notes and photos to the family by simply placing them on the scanner and pushing one button.
All correspondences sent to family members are delivered to a private Web site account at CaringFamily.com, where they can view and respond to them. Besides sending a scanned version of a grandchild's drawing or a family trip photo, relatives also can send content from the Web site compiled by CaringFamily, such as crossword puzzles, flowers of the day and "news of the weird," among others.
The system also grants each family a private network, keeping outsiders, such as spammers or scam artists, out.
Williams, the company's chief technical officer, says he thinks the use of the digital mailbox will create a number of benefits.
For the aged, it creates a new venue of communication, presumably increasing the frequency and duration of contact with relatives, which can break a cycle of isolation, loneliness and depression that leads to physical and mental decline. It also helps stimulate intellectual activity.
Other avenues of communication obviously exist. Personal visits, phone calls and mail are the traditional means, but often suffer from time constraints or lack of immediacy, Williams says.
Other products exist, too. But, Williams says, the elderly tend to resist PCs ? the keyboard keys are too small, as is the print on monitors. And other products pose similar types of hurdles ? for instance, the EarthLink Mailstation, which sends and receives e-mail without a computer, still requires typing.
The company says it thinks the market will embrace its product. About $257 billion is spent each year in the time and resources required for caregiving, according to the MetLife Foundation study, so there's an identifiable group of people already seeking additional tools.
CaringFamily estimates the digital mailbox will cost between $200 and $400, plus monthly subscription fees and ongoing maintenance costs.
Whether it works remains to be seen. Small trials with friends and family have been ongoing for the past two years, including one with Ted Santos Sr., Williams' father-in-law who lives in San Diego. Anecdotally, the system appears to increase communication levels and activity.
"I'd say, in general, it's been positive for him," says Ted Santos Jr. of his father. "It's definitely helped address some of the loneliness and long-distance issues."
More quantitative studies are under way.
One involves CaringFamily's participation in a larger, $5.5 million federal research project at the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for the Advancement of Cognitive Technologies at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center.
Another involves a Small Business Innovation Research grant CaringFamily recently received.
"I think what (the digital mailbox) can do for elders in general is it can definitely decrease isolation, which is a huge barrier in aging," says Dr. Cathy Bodine, a member of the company's scientific advisory board who also is overseeing the project at CU Health Sciences. "I think the most interested buyer will be the baby boomer generation, who may live at a distance, have a career and have concern for their parents.
"It gives you another tool in dealing with these issues."
Contact Camera Business Writer Matt Branaugh at
(303) 473-1363 or branaughm@dailycamera.com.
http://proto.caringfamily.com/public/news/daily_camera.html
|
|
|
|
|
Posted by: donwrege on Tuesday, February 01, 2005 - 08:48 PM
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
| |
|
Related links
|
|
|
