The most recent research from South Korea has discovered variations in function and satisfaction with using healthcare apps and wearable well being units amongst older Koreans.
Researchers from Seoul Nationwide College, Yonsei College, senior care firm Silvia Well being and DTx maker WELT Corp. surveyed Koreans aged 65 and over examine how they’re utilizing digital well being applied sciences and the way frailty impacts their use. They declare to be the primary to check using digital well being know-how between pre-frail or frail older adults and wholesome older individuals.
The outcomes of their research, which was supported by a grant from the Korea Illness Management and Prevention Company, was printed within the Journal of Korean Medical Science.
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The research surveyed 505 respondents, 30% of whom are thought-about frail by Korean requirements, whereas the remaining are thought-about wholesome. All respondents are recognized to be smartphone customers, though the vast majority of them (63%) can not set up or uninstall cell functions on their very own.
1 / 4 of respondents had been discovered to make use of healthcare apps, largely wholesome older individuals. Frail older persons are extra doubtless to make use of some of these functions Get details about well being care and search medical steering that makes older individuals wholesome. The place these apps are most helpful is in supporting self-care and managing private healthcare information, the researchers famous.
In the meantime, solely 36 of greater than 500 respondents use wearable units. These embrace smartwatches, listening to units, and wearable patch-type units, that are primarily used to measure bodily exercise. It was noticed that wholesome customers had been extra prone to discover consolation in utilizing wearable units than their frail counterparts. The latter are extra doubtless to make use of wearable units to resolve whether or not to make emergency visits or early hospital visits.
WHY IT MATTERS
South Korea's inhabitants is growing older quickly and seniors will account for almost 20% or 9.73 million of its complete inhabitants in 2023. Statistics Korea expects their quantity to achieve 10 million this 12 months. Given this persevering with development, the company beforehand predicted that by 2050, individuals aged 65 and older will make up 40% of the Korean inhabitants.
As the most recent survey discovered decrease use of healthcare apps and units amongst frail seniors and a few variations in digital well being use between frail and wholesome seniors, researchers instructed growing applied sciences that think about their distinctive wants.
“[A]Though digital well being know-how is an rising area in well being administration, it requires extra issues when utilized to older adults in comparison with youthful adults. To extend the use [of] digital well being know-how amongst older adults, it is very important determine their particular functions and expectations for mentioned know-how,” they defined.
“Due to this fact, when growing digital units for pre-frail and frail older adults, it’s essential to include customized providers that meet their distinctive wants, notably these providers they use continuously,” the researchers concluded.
THE BIGGEST TREND
By having one of many largest populations of smartphone customers on this planet, South Korea will help enhance the well being outcomes and standing of its inhabitants by Promote the adoption of cell well being applied sciences. A 2022 research really helpful this after discovering know-how's potential to attenuate the consequences of social determinants of well being, together with gender, family revenue, and social capital, on the well being of Koreans, notably the underserved. . Nonetheless, it was highlighted that cell well being methods can not but change care supplied via conventional settings.