CAST Report Highlights Barriers for IT Adoption

LeadingAge's Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST) released a compilation of 18 case studies highlighting how providers are using technology to change their business while improving care and services.

Barriers to technology innovation were also cited including:

• Lack of funding for developing and maintaining IT systems
• Lack of infrastructure and wireless networking technology in older buildings
• Legacy systems and products that do not work together, particularly the need to juggle multiple electronic record systems
• Conflicts and confusion between IT and clinical staff due to internal silos and poor communication

The good news is that organizations are beginning to see the value in technology fueled by these drivers:

• Consumers are in the spotlight. Many organizations are recognizing that unless they place the consumer--and his or her preferences--at the heart of their strategic plans, those plans are unlikely to be successful as the baby boomers age. Providers have responded by offering.non-traditional.services such as home repair, maintenance and renovation, in addition to other services and supports designed to promote aging in place.
• Expanding outreach. Organizations are expanding their customer research beyond traditional market surveys aimed at gauging consumer willingness to move to a planned bricks-and-mortar campus. Instead, these organizations are using focus groups and other information to connect with consumers who will never step onto their campuses.
• Educating consumers. Several organizations are taking deliberate steps to ensure that consumers who are not tech-savvy have a good first experience with technology. This can involve sponsoring traditional computer classes; showcasing technologies in an interactive environment so consumers can see how they work and how they might be deployed in the home.

The report also cites how organizations are taking deliberate steps to involve staff members in the decision-making process when technology initiatives are developed and to ensure that clinical and information technology (IT) staff collaborate on technology deployments.

Quoting from McKnights: "Most organizations struggle to calculate return on investment (ROI) for technology initiatives," according to the report. "Others deliberately avoid such calculations because their technology initiatives are so intertwined with organizational services and processes that it is difficult to separate one from the other. "Despite difficulties calculating ROI, organizations still look to technology-enabled services as a source of either current or future revenues."

As aging-in-place becomes the preferred scenario for boomers and seniors expect technology issues to multiply. Smart entrepreneurs will be looking to capitalize on this opportunity.

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