Nursebot Pearl, a Robotic Assistant for Older Adults (Video 5:21)

Meet Nursebot Pearl, a robot that will make you rethink your vision of how a caregiver can look and interact with you. Whenever I mention the use of robots for improving the quality of life of older adults, someone feels compelled to remind me that robots can’t replace people. I totally agree. But the reality is that people are living longer, and the population of older adults with ongoing health concerns continues to increase. Those living at home with chronic disorders are particularly in need of support that robotic technology can provide.

Several years ago, researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie ‎Mellon University started the Personal Robotic Assistants for the Elderly project, an inter-‎disciplinary multi-university research initiative focused on robotic technology for the ‎elderly. The project goal is to develop mobile, personal-service robots that assist older adults suffering from chronic disorders in their everyday lives. Pearl continues to be researched and improved. The National Science Foundation funds her development.

A talking robot, Pearl’s face has interchangeable parts that display various emotions. Among many tasks, she can help seniors maintain their independence by reminding them about hygiene, medications, doctor’s visits, and other important information they might forget. She can send information remotely to caregivers and provide needed strength for manipulating objects. A major benefit for older adults living alone is the social interaction they can enjoy in her company.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback at many booksellers and in e-book form at Amazon and Barnes and Noble booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Eldercare Robot: CareBot Companion and Caregiver for Older Adults (Video 2:19)

We can pretend that robots are only for sci-fi movies, but they are already being created to make life easier for older adults. Artificial intelligence of robots makes them especially good companions for older adults living alone or those in need of caregiving attention. What is artificial intelligence? This means the robot not only has the ability to navigate safely in its surroundings, but it also has the intelligence to do meaningful caregiving.  Maybe that’s why they are called CareBots.

The GeckoSystems CareBot is a robotic eldercare system that allows family members to care for older adults from afar. According to Martin Spencer, President/CEO of GeckoSystems, CareBot is a new kind of companion that “always stays close to the care receiver, enabling family and friends to care for them from afar. It tells them jokes, retells family anecdotes, reminds them to take medication, reminds them that family is coming over soon (or not at all), recites Bible verses, plays favorite songs and/or other music.” Even the voice can be customized.

From a security point of view, a CareBot alerts family members when unexpected visitors or intruders are present. It notifies designated caregivers when a potentially harmful event has occurred such as a fall, fire in the home, or even if no one has been present for too long. It responds to calls for help and notifies those persons that the caregiver has designated.

Referred to as Emily, the CareBot in this video serves as a helpful companion to Doris by keeping track of her taking medicines, reminding her about TV shows, and performing other tasks that improve the quality of Doris’ life.

What do you think about having Emily or another CareBot living with you or helping an older adult in your family?

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog

Television Viewing in Long-Term Care (Research)

                         

"I Love Lucy” Television Show

My grandmother loved watching the soaps on television. Home alone during the day, she laughed, cried, and wrung her hands with worry over strangers who took over her living room daily. But they weren't strangers to her. Like Lucy, she had plenty of explaining to do when I came home.

As a hospice volunteer, I wasn’t surprised at all when I visited nursing homes and saw the important role television played in many senior residents’ lives. Beverly, one of my patients, couldn’t hear very well. She disliked wearing her hearing aid as much as she disliked wearing her false teeth. But that didn’t stop her from eating her peanut butter sandwich crackers while watching television in her room. She listened carefully and tried to make sense of whatever she could. Later, she would ask me to unravel her confusion about a world that was nothing like she remembered. Even the weather was different. And why didn’t Oprah and Stedman just get married?

Some people have negative opinions about residents watching television in long-term care facilities. They think it makes them passive and less healthy. And they would be correct sometimes. I have certainly seen television used as a poor substitute for planned quality time. But watching television can be a positive experience under appropriate circumstances when it’s not used in excess. Research even supports this.

In a study of two nursing home settings, rural and urban, with residents aged 82 through 100, resident interviews and observations reported these results:

Television viewing contributes to structuring daily life, to satisfying old peoples' needs for reflection and contemplation, and to residents’ remaining socially integrated. (That certainly worked for my grandmother.)

Nursing home residents are often curious and eager to know about what is going on outside the nursing home world, even when they don’t agree with what they discover. In fact, disagreement can add to lively social discussions. Watching television and learning new information helps residents stay engaged with others and contributes to their wells of communication. Hmm, sounds like the same positive impact good television can have on people in general.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

"Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes”

“Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog”

Video Poem: “Living Colors” (Nursing Home, Staff Shortage, Poor Vision, Alzheimer’s Disease, Hospice) 2:56 mins.

“Living Colors” is one of sixteen original poems included at the end of each chapter of "Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes.” With poems, stories, and general information, "Becoming Dead Right" explores urban nursing homes, hospice care, caregiving, dementia, death preparations, and bereavement. Strategies for improving eldercare and nursing homes are examined.

This poem was inspired by one of my hospice patients who had Alzheimer’s disease and poor eyesight. More sight problems could be corrected in nursing homes if residents received vision care regularly. My patient needed assistance to eat, but there was a staff shortage that day. Staff shortages in nursing homes negatively impact patients across the country. Using her fingers, she started feeding herself. I arrived to find her with food smeared around her mouth. After wondering what that experience might have been like for her, I wrote this poem:

Living Colors



Frances Shani Parker, Author
"Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes”
“Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog”

Video Poem: “Reflections of a Hospice Volunteer” (Hospice, Nursing Homes, Eldercare) 3:25 mins.

“Reflections of a Hospice Volunteer” is one of sixteen original poems included at the end of each chapter of "Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes.” With poems, stories, and general information, "Becoming Dead Right" explores hospice care, urban nursing homes, caregiving, dementia, death preparations, and bereavement. Strategies for improving eldercare and nursing homes are examined.

Dedicated hospice volunteers everywhere enhance quality of life during patients’ final days. This poem expresses the win-win experience of many volunteers.



Frances Shani Parker, Author
"Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes”
“Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog”