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A caregiver for his parents, Mihailidis is also the CEO and scientific director of AGE-WELL, a Canadian non-profit organization and network that is researching and developing technologies to help older Canadians stay independent for longer. 聽

鈥淚 have been researching in this area for 25 years now and things have been slowly building up,鈥� said Mihailidis, who works with universities, institutions and start-ups from across the country to develop and commercialize technologies that can support older adults and their caregivers.

鈥淚n the past four or five years, we have really seen a boom in terms of what is happening, but also because of the pandemic,鈥� he said, adding the network is currently working on more than 170 products. 鈥淚t provided a lot of opportunity for people to demonstrate how technology can be used in healthcare, and that accelerated work in this field.鈥�

We asked Mihailidis to share his insight and personal experience into how caregiving is changing thanks to technology.

Has technology allowed people to stay in their homes while still receiving care?

in the last few years, we have seen more technologies becoming readily available that older adults and their caregivers have started to use. There are technologies out there that, for example, help with coordinating the caregiving of a loved one among siblings or family members. There are also technologies, like smart home systems, that provide alerts to family members or others caring for older adults.

I am a caregiver for my parents in their late 80s, and I use technology that has come out of the AGE-WELL network that tells me if they are in or out of bed, what their heartrate is, what their breathing rate is, so I can make sure they are safe and sound in their own home.

What does it mean for people receiving care that they can stay at home?

You talk to the majority of people, and they want to stay in their own homes, their own communities and in their own social networks. Studies have shown that ageing in the place of your choice significantly helps to support your own health and wellness but also your mental health.

How important has it been for you knowing you can support your own parents and keep them in their home?

The number one goal with my parents was that they want to remain in their home for as long as possible. Technology has helped me and my sisters as caregivers because we don鈥檛 have to constantly check in on them and make sure they are safe and sound because the technology is telling us that they are.

More importantly, when I call my mom to talk to her, the first question out of my mouth is not, 鈥淎re you okay? Are you sleeping well?鈥� I know that she is. So, I can instead ask her about her day and other aspects of her life not related to her health and wellness because I have that information which provides me with that reassurance.

What have you heard from other caregivers?

It is a similar story. That it helps with independence. It might help caregivers return to work because the technology can be used during the times when they are not there. These days we are seeing younger caregivers or caregivers who also have small children 鈥� that 鈥渟andwich generation鈥� as it is called 鈥� so the technology helps to provide some relief that they would not have had before.

Can you explain some of the technologies that are available?

We have sensor technologies that you can be positioned around the home 鈥� and we are not talking about high-tech sensors, but motion sensors that are part of any home security system. These technologies are being used to detect things like wandering in the home or to understand movement patterns.

There is a product we are supporting called Cook from the Universit茅 de Montr茅al, and it uses sensors throughout the home that monitors the various steps people need to complete making a meal, like is the stove turned on or has it been turned off.

Can everyday products also be used, like Google 91原创 or Amazon Alexa or even cameras?

We are starting more and more to see these off-the-shelf items being integrated and used for elder care, particularly voice devices, which is much more natural for people.

They can be used to set reminders or to do some home automations. Like if a person gets out of bed at night, they can use a simple voice command to turn on a light in a bathroom, so they are not walking in the dark, which is often when many falls happen among older adults.

Things like camera systems, whether they are like Ring doorbells or a home security system, can also be used as well to see or monitor the motions of older adults and see what is going on in the home.

We are hearing more about artificial intelligence (AI) recently. What role can it play?

It can play a significant role in the development of these technologies, particularly in helping these technologies to adapt to the specific person they are providing care for.

The older population is heterogeneous and diverse. A one size fits all solution does not work. So, AI will allow us to learn about that person and adapt the way the technology is providing assistant, providing reminders and things like that, so it becomes a more natural part of people鈥檚 life.

There is that clich茅 that older people do not adapt well to new technology 鈥� is that the case or are they embracing it?

Older people are becoming far more comfortable using technology, especially as baby boomers become that generation receiving care. They are used to using technology as part of their daily lives and now particularly in their health care.

The whole notion that older people are technophobic is really not true anymore.

Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.