Your 50+ clients rely on you to be knowledgeable about advancements in senior living and care. As the sharing and gig economies made popular by Uber and Airbnb proliferate, you should be aware of companies with similar business and funding models now emerging and focused on at-home health care—especially if your clients are interested in aging in place, a concept we introduced last week.
Companies like Honor, HomeHero, CareFamily, and Hometeam offer on-demand home health and personal care and are poised to make quite an impact in the next few years. They work in ways that are similar to ride- and home-sharing services, using smartphones, GPS positioning, and digital technology to accomplish their work.
We can expect these companies to collect more than just ride histories and ratings, however. No doubt they will collect and integrate all kinds of existing and new health care data, effectively blurring the lines across the continuum of care (which include homes, outpatient clinics, long and short term care facilities, and hospitals). They will help set the stage for highly personalized health care—an initiative that has been gaining steam in the health care industry for a few decades now.
Clearly the “internet of things” (IoT) movement that is making homes more sustainable and healthy also has the ability to make its inhabitants healthier as well. Why is this important? Well, by being able to supply the most effective but least invasive type of health care (think nurse visits vs. hospital admissions), we can make health care and health insurance more cost-effective for everyone. That’s important since we are all living longer.
In addition, helping seniors stay out of facilities and in their homes or in small-group settings may battle isolation and help provide memory care services that alleviate or prevent Alzheimer’s and other cognitive issues. Some other intriguing ways that technology is assisting seniors is through the use of GPS tracking and geo-fencing to prevent wandering of those with dementia, and automated windows and shades to alleviate “sundowning” disorientation of the elderly in the evening hours.
For much more about home and living considerations for the 50+ market, please consider checking out this month’s featured 25% OFF course at the Center for REALTOR® Development, the Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES®) Designation Course. The SRES® course is the fundamental requirement toward obtaining the SRES® Designation, one of the most valuable and esteemed of all the NAR credentials.
