Speaker: Brendon Buckley, IMEG
As residents in senior living facilities continue to become increasingly comfortable with technological advances, their environments need to be capable of providing enhanced experiences that meet their expectations. Smart home systems, wearable devices, virtual reality, and AI have furthered the capabilities of and access to remote monitoring and telemedicine, digital therapy, and virtual health assistants. No longer cutting-edge methods, these technologies are being employed and improved at a rapid pace. Understanding how to integrate a variety of new and advanced technology and security systems with legacy systems can improve outcomes for residents and staff. An environment of integrated systems can not only simplify resident engagement, it can also benefit health and wellbeing. We are learning increasingly more about how exposure to light can contribute to overall metabolic health in a variety of ways. Even advances in design techniques, like the concept of biophilia, are being employed to reinforce natural human connections in meaningful and powerful ways. Creating a truly human-centric experience requires consideration of the ways that sensory inputs and resident interactions affect health and satisfaction in these living spaces. Thoughtful design and proper leverage of these advanced technologies and integrated building systems can also contribute to greater sustainability and savings in construction and operational costs. Building Management System (BMS) integration and AI enhanced sensors directly contribute to building energy savings, while Power over ethernet (PoE) and Real Time Locating Systems (RTLS) may help to increase response time and improve operational efficiency. In considering each of these systems and how they integrate, it’s important to understand quality, functionality, intuitiveness, aesthetics, and the owner’s specific needs and requirements. While these technology advancements are exciting, it is critical to first conduct a needs assessment with the owner to be able to select the right solution for the project. It is also important to produce a plan of implementation, including any necessary infrastructure improvements required, as well as staff and resident training at the final stages. Partnering with the right experts can ease these transitions when they know the right questions to ask and are able to focus on the most important part of the project – the people.