My Google blogger alerts have been blinking and beeping about the Virtual Dementia Tour, an offering from a non-profit called Second Wind Dreams. Profit from the sale of the kit (for professionals or individual caregivers) goes to programs that Second Wind Dreams sponsors -- a charity to boost focus and perception about residents in long-term care facilities. Sounds good. Nothing negative about the mission of Second Wind Dreams.

Not so surprising, and despite the Beatles and the under-30 set, the Pew generation gap study observes that for those in middle age, old age begins at 70, but that when you're over 64, you think old age begins at 74. Moreover, 60% of those over the age of 65 feel younger than their actual age. Cool.

So let's say you live in an isolated location, leave the house to go out to a garage or walk the dog, how useful is a PERS pendant or watch? I am not impressed with how forthcoming PERS vendors are with little details like how far from the base station the wearer can travel. Here's the big player, Philips Lifeline: "Works from anywhere in or around the home, including basement, garage and yard. [Note: Range may vary due to construction of your home and distance from the Lifeline Telephone or Basic Unit.]."  So what is that range, anyway? Not stated.

A while ago I considered the question of monitoring a person (wearable devices) or monitoring the place in whcih someone resides (remote sensor-based monitoring). From that entry:  "Each requires someone to educate seniors on the role of the devices on or around them so that they can actively participate -- and opt in to the idea of being monitored." I am glad that I wrote that. Here's an example where that did not happen:

At the 2009 Boomer Venture Summit event June 17, 2009, senior catalog company firstSTREET and partner MyGait announced the GO Computer -- described, quite confusingly, not on the First Street Online site, but on a separate The GO Computer site (in itself mystifying), as a landmark breakthrough. The description: a "failure-free and fear-free" computer especially conceived for and by seniors over an eight-year period of hands-on research at senior centers and assisted living communities around the country."

Just wrapped up a fascinating day at the Boomer Venture Summit at Santa Clara University.  High point for me was listening to the top guru of the age-related media world, Ken Dychtwald -- who sees our future as a series of life cycle changes that marketers have yet to understand and correctly target -- not the least of which is the 'tipping point' of retirement (Huffington Post).

I am exhausted thinking about my later years. So many studies -- it makes you breathless -- show a correlation between reduced incidence of dementia and certain behaviors. Do people who remain sharp choose these activities? Or do these activities help people remain sharp? Oops, sorry. Nobody really knows.

But as we anticipate the future, and newspapers capitalize on their and our impossible-to-calm fear of dementia, prepare to hustle.

The medication reminder world has had three tiers of product offerings -- telephone-based reminders, reminders linked to emergency response offerings, and electronic pillboxes. And medication errors, including those from incorrectly filling pillboxes, continue to be vexing.

Please tell me I am wrong. As the economy sinks, funding for health IT has grown -- and of course, the National Institute on Aging continues to fund research on global aging.  Meanwhile Intel researches and invests, along with GE, in sensor-based monitoring technology. But I am uneasy.

Jitterbug announced a new phone this past week -- the Jitterbug J -- that I find striking -- simply because of its newly announced LiveNurse capability, offered as an additional service. Base service rate plans have risen from $10/month to $14.99 (50 minutes).  The $147 phone (not cheap!) is Bluetooth compatible, sleeker looking, with a speaker for hands-free/headset use.