Researchers: Shirli Resnizky¹

Background: Recent years have seen a wave of innovation in medical technologies. Their utilization could help the elderly live safely at home, ensure accessibility of medical services, reduce inequality and reduce costs. The importance of this issue increases as the population ages and chronic morbidity rises, causing an increase in health expenditures. Nevertheless, we still lack information about the willingness of senior citizens with various functioning levels to adopt medical technologies at home.

Objectives: Examine differences in utilization of, attitudes towards and barriers to use medical technologies according to demographic characteristics and the correlations between utilization and health/functional status and barriers to use technology

Method: Secondary analysis of four cross-sectional surveys and the Central Bureau of Statistics’ Social Survey, as well as content analysis of seven focus groups with older adults with varying functioning levels. Formalizing policy recommendations with the assistance of relevant experts.

Findings: Low technology usage is related to advanced age, low education, low socioeconomic status and disability. Attitudes has a strong influence on usage even when controlling for these factors. The main barriers are fear of failure, physical difficulties, shame, and general resistance to technology. Facilitators include awareness of benefits, helpful relatives, and learning adapted to the elderly.

Conclusions: Disability had an impact beyond background characteristics on utilization of technology. Attitudes had a key impact on usage, and family members had a major role in promoting accessibility.

Recommendations: Using medical technology must be encouraged while emphasizing its contribution and making it more accessible by adjusting the learning process to the population. Family members are key agents in the process and mechanisms should be developed that will enable them to manage care while protecting the elderly person’s privacy.

Research end date: 11/2021