Addressing healthy aging populations in developing countries: unlocking the opportunity of eHealth and mHealth

Abstract

Aging societies worldwide propose a significant challenge to the model and organisation of the delivery of healthcare services. In developing countries, communicable and non-communicable diseases are affecting how the ageing population access healthcare; this could be due to varying reasons such as geographical barriers, limited financial support and poor literacy. New information and communication technology, such as eHealth have the potential to improve access to healthcare, information exchange and improving public and personalised medicine for elderly groups. In this article we will first frame the context of information and communication technologies in light of an aging landscape. We will also discuss the problems related to implementing the needed infrastructure for uptake of new technology, with particular emphasis on developing countries. In so doing, we highlight areas where newer technologies can serve as promising tools or vehicles to address health and healthcare-related gaps and needs of elderly people living in resource-constrained settings.

A systematic review of reviews to identify key research opportunities within the field of eHealth implementation

“…There is a need for active involvement and collaboration from all those involved; therefore, requiring the need for common understanding between all those concerned as well as combined participation and familiarity with associated processes [5]. For eHealth to progress, key factors relating to the end-user such as their attitudes [6], [7], [8] and their education [9], [10], [11], [12] prior to implementing an eHealth service should be considered. However, additional factors such as the level of training provided to an end-user [7], [9], [13] after an eHealth service has been implemented should also be considered.…”

“…The analysed literature reveals that first world citizens have comparatively more wealth and resultantly better education [22] whereas the developing world is often faced with hurdles such as having a larger population [37] and larger geographical areas to cover [11], [37] as well as having slower internet adoption rates. In terms of population health, health inequalities also exist between urban and rural areas in less developed countries [11], [37], [38]. However, a problem that exists globally is that even within regions, there can be challenges due to local organisational context [6], [15], [37], [39].…”

“…However, a problem that exists globally is that even within regions, there can be challenges due to local organisational context [6], [15], [37], [39]. Different hospitals and healthcare centres, for example, adopt and practice their own rules and regulations [11]. These establishments are also tied to organisational bureaucracy, human resources [6], various unconnected ICT systems/services [11] and organisational workflow support [20].…”

Meeting the Escalating Demands for Health and Social Care Services of Elderly Populations in Developing Countries: A Strategic Perspective

“…Although not as fashionable as investment in curative services, campaigns to improve lifestyles of the elderly can, if done in an effective manner, deliver big gains in health status (Henriquez-Camacho et al, 2014). However, to be effective, such campaigns require significant investment in resources and the use of specialist skills such as social marketing…”

A multimodal conversational coach for active ageing based on sentient computing and m‐health

“…In addition to applications that target physical activity, the kinds of applications designed for active ageing cover different types of interventions: information systems for clinical use (Bourret & Bousquet, 2013), coaching of the elderly person (Jongstra et al, 2017;Richard et al, 2016;Tiedemann et al, 2016), cognitive behavior therapy (Preschl, Wagner, Forstmeier, & Maercker, 2011), cognitive training (Gates et al, 2016;Reijnders, Geusgens, Ponds, & van Boxtel, 2017;Santos, Reis, & Barroso, 2013), communication tools between health-care professionals and patients or carers (Henriquez-Camacho, Losa, Miranda, & Cheyne, 2014;Preschl et al, 2011), decision support systems (Bourret & Bousquet, 2013), education of patients (Henriquez-Camacho et al, 2014;Lattanzio et al, 2014), applications that target ethical considerations of technologies (Karki, Savel, Sallinen, & Kuusinen, 2013), computer and serious games (Gates et al, 2016;Santos et al, 2013), information systems and technology development (Bourret & Bousquet, 2013;Ferreira, Sayago, & Blat, 2017;Karki et al, 2013), applications focused on the management and coordination of e-health interventions (Lattanzio et al, 2014), applications targeting rehabilitation (Kaufman, 2012), systems that target social inclusion and participation (Ferreira et al, 2017;Henriquez-Camacho et al, 2014), remote care technologies (Jongstra et al, 2017;Knowles, Skeath, Jia, Najafi, Thayer, & Sternberg, 2016), telehealth applications to help support self-management (Henriquez-Camacho et al, 2014;Lee, Han, & Jo, 2017;Tiedemann et al, 2016), and telemedicine systems for direct intervention of the clinician (Keijser et al, 2016;Lattanzio et al, 2014).…”