ObjectivesThis research is part of an international project to design and test a home-based healthcare robot to help older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or early dementia. The aim was to investigate the perceived usefulness of different daily-care activities for the robot, developed from previous research on needs.DesignQualitative descriptive analysis using semistructured interviews. Two studies were conducted. In the first study, participants watched videos of a prototype robot performing daily-care activities; in the second study, participants interacted with the robot itself.SettingInterviews were conducted at a university and a retirement village.ParticipantsIn study 1, participants were nine experts in aged care and nine older adults living in an aged care facility. In study 2, participants were 10 experts in aged care.ResultsThe themes that emerged included aspects of the robot’s interactions, potential benefits, the appearance, actions and humanness of the robot, ways to improve its functionality and technical issues. Overall, the activities were perceived as useful, especially the reminders and safety checks, with possible benefits of companionship, reassurance and reduced caregiver burden. Suggestions included personalising the robot to each individual, simplifying the language and adding more activities. Technical issues still need to be fixed.ConclusionThis study adds to knowledge about healthcare robots for people with MCI by developing and testing a new robot with daily-care activities including safety checks. The robot was seen to be potentially useful but needs to be tested with people with MCI.

Background and Aim: Loneliness is a common problem in older adults and contributes to poor health. This scoping review aimed to synthesize and report evidence on the effectiveness of interventions using social robots or computer agents to reduce loneliness in older adults and to explore intervention strategies. Methods: The review adhered to the Arksey and O'Malley process for conducting scoping reviews. The SCOPUS, PUBMED, Web of Science, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, ACM Digital Library and IEEE Xplore databases were searched in November, 2020. A two-step selection process identified eligible research. Information was extracted from papers and entered into an Excel coding sheet and summarised. Quality assessments were conducted using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Results: Twenty-nine studies were included, of which most were of moderate to high quality. Eighteen were observational and 11 were experimental. Twenty-four used robots, four used computer agents and one study used both. The majority of results showed that robots or computer agents positively impacted at least one loneliness outcome measure. Some unintended negative consequences on social outcomes were reported, such as sadness when the robot was removed. Overall, the interventions helped to combat loneliness by acting as a direct companion (69%), a catalyst for social interaction (41%), facilitating remote communication with others (10%) and reminding users of upcoming social engagements (3%). Conclusion: Evidence to date suggests that robots can help combat loneliness in older adults, but there is insufficient research on computer agents. Common strategies for reducing loneliness include direct companionship and enabling social interactions. Future research could investigate other strategies used in human interventions (eg, addressing maladaptive social cognition and improving social skills), and the effects of design features on efficacy. It is recommended that more robust experimental and mixed methods research be conducted, using a combination of validated self-report, observational, and interview measures of loneliness.

Research has demonstrated that nature is beneficial for many aspects of one's health. This pilot study aimed to investigate whether viewing landscape artworks, as a form of representational nature, could improve psychological and physiological recovery from a laboratory stressor. A sample of 30 participants was randomized to one of two conditions: landscape and scrambled. After a laboratory stress task, participants in the landscape condition viewed a series of landscape paintings for 30 min; participants in the scrambled condition viewed digitally scrambled versions of these artworks as a control condition. Pupil size was measured while viewing the images using an eye tracker. Affect, drowsiness and fatigue, and the salivary stress biomarkers, cortisol, and alpha-amylase were measured at baseline, after the stressor, and after the artwork viewing period. After the viewing period, the scrambled condition had increased reports of low negative affect (which contains the variables of sleepy, dull, and sluggish) (p = 0.045, h p 2 = 0.12) and increased reports of drowsiness (p = 0.038, h p 2 = 0.12). Salivary cortisol levels decreased more rapidly while viewing the scrambled images compared to the landscape artworks (p = 0.027, h p 2 = 0.62). Lastly, pupil size while viewing the landscape artworks was larger than when viewing a blank screen (p = 0.025, h p 2 = 0.33), an effect not seen in the scrambled condition. This pilot study suggests that viewing landscape artworks was more stimulating and reduced drowsiness after stress when compared to viewing scrambled images.

Background: Psychological comorbidities are common in patients with disorders of gut-brain interaction (DGBIs) and are often linked with poorer patient outcomes. Likewise, extensive research has shown a bidirectional association between psychological factors and gastrointestinal symptoms, termed the gut-brain axis. Consequently, assessing and managing mental wellbeing, in an integrated care pathway, may lead to improvements in symptoms and quality of life for some patients. This study aimed to explore patients' and gastroenterology clinicians' opinions on integrating psychometrics into routine DGBI testing. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 patients with a gastroduodenal DGBI and 19 clinicians who see and treat these patients. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using inductive, reflexive thematic analysis. Results: Three key clinician themes were developed: (1) psychology as part of holistic care, emphasising the importance of a multidisciplinary approach; (2) the value of psychometrics in clinical practice, highlighting their potential for screening and expanding management plans; and (3) navigating barriers to utilising psychometrics, addressing the need for standardisation and external handling to maintain the therapeutic relationship. Four key patient themes were also developed: (1) the utility of psychometrics in clinical care, reflecting the perceived benefits; (2) openness to psychological management, indicating patients' willingness to explore psychological treatment options; (3) concerns with psychological integration, addressing potential stigma and fear of labelling; and (4) the significance of clinician factors, emphasising the importance of clinician bedside manner, knowledge, and collaboration. Conclusions: The themes generated from the interviews indicated that patients and clinicians see value in integrating psychometrics into routine DGBI testing. Despite potential barriers, psychometrics would advance the understanding of a patient's condition and facilitate holistic and multidisciplinary management. Recommendations for navigating challenges were provided, and considering these, patients and clinicians supported the use of psychometrics as mental health screening tools for patients with gastroduodenal DGBIs.

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