AI and machine learning

Concerns about AI are all around, but its future role is inevitable.  There it is, one consumer well-publicized survey after another, whether it is the WSJ,  Pew Research or AARP,  even as adoption in business, healthcare and other industries grows.  Consumers continue to express worry – but in the meantime…82% of companies are either using or exploring use of AI today. That parallels the senior living and care organizations interviewed for this new report – there is a combination of evaluating, limited use, and actually in use with benefit. Interviewees contributed ideas, actual projects and concerns, helping to shape the new report, The Future of AI in Senior Living and Care.

A new study offers a conundrum, or maybe a marketing problem.  Most Americans 50 and older don’t trust AI-generated health information, says a new poll published by the University of Michigan. But they do trust their own ability to figure out what information is good and what isn’t when they look for it.  They say they trust WebMD, Healthline. And yet only 32% said it was easy to find accurate health advice.  But how would you know what is accurate? And the 84% who said they got health information from a health care provider, pharmacist, friend or family member in the past year. A friend or family member?  Really?

No surprise – AI tools are already part of senior living operations and planning. The research phase is nearly complete for the report on AI in Senior Living and Care.  It is increasingly apparent that AI is not a future for many. it is already solving vexing problems that proprietary or existing apps could not effectively tackle, whether in senior living or skilled nursing home environments. Although a few interviewees felt that AI tools were 'not quite ready for prime time' all saw that the future benefit, particularly in terms of more effective use of data, optimizing workloads of staff, and proactive monitoring of the wellbeing of residents. The report will quote specific executives about their experiences, but here are insights from the 20 conversations held to date:

Aging in place is a business opportunity as much as it is a personal strategy.  The apparent enthusiasm for aging in place has fueled interest among home builders. Consumer aging in place desires provide work for home remodelers, adding features that make a home more accessible as people age. But for older adults, the motivation for aging in place is also an economic necessity.  The monthly cost of moving into senior housing, above $5500 nationwide, is out of the reach of most people. Remaining in a home and planning modest remodeling modifications will be the approach for most who want to stay.

Surveys were released recently that trigger some debate.  Consider whether the low adoption of health-related tech is due to flaws with the tech or with the survey questions?  AARP’s responders only had notable interest in fitness apps, though 63% of responders had chronic conditions that could usefully be monitored or mitigated by apps if the survey took a deeper dive. Do we really know from this non-specific survey whether older adults are trying them out? Up next was the Best Buy survey of consumer health tech – and again some irony in the responses.  Sixty-seven percent of the 65+ responders said that staying in their homes is a top priority. Yet when asked about the utility of monitoring technology for use in later life, the 65+ segment was the least interested among age cohorts, a clear “What me, worry?”  Here are the blog posts from August 2024: