Remote monitoring

Recently I sat next to a neurologist on a flight who complained to me about a vexing problem. Elderly patients with dementia would arrive at her office to have their medications adjusted, but would bring no documentation of what they were already taking. Often the patient arrived from an Assisted Living or nursing home facility -- their excuse? Carrying the paperwork in the van was a violation of the patient's privacy.

So there aren't enough home care aides to take care of us now, let alone when the boomers hit prime time age 85+. Such a great human interest story for the Washington Post Magazine, ya gotta love it.  And I know how we all want to age in place, sitting alone in our own living rooms, with the home health care aide coming in to care for and check on us. And key to the plot -- our deep fear of nursing homes.

Surfing around the websites that help with defining and guiding those in search of independent living, assisted living, nursing home and the combination of these known as a CCRC (continuing care retirement communities), you can spend time on guidance sites like Gilbert Guide, RetirementHomes.com, the unfortunately-named

The GE-Intel alliance -- with an associated $250 million of joint investment over the next five years -- announced this past week could get everybody in the tech industry excited.  Even the business pundits that watch them are all aflutter about the possibilities for aging in place technology.