Smart homes and home health monitoring technologies for older adults: A systematic review

• Technology readiness for smart home and health monitoring technologies is low.
• High level of evidence for monitoring function, cognitive and mental health.
• Minimal evidence technology predicts disability, prevents falls, helps quality of life.
• Conflicting evidence home health technologies help conditions of COPD.

BackgroundAround the world, populations are aging and there is a growing concern about ways that older adults can maintain their health and well-being while living in their homes.ObjectivesThe aim of this paper was to conduct a systematic literature review to determine: (1) the levels of technology readiness among older adults and, (2) evidence for smart homes and home-based health-monitoring technologies that support aging in place for older adults who have complex needs.ResultsWe identified and analyzed 48 of 1863 relevant papers. Our analyses found that: (1) technology-readiness level for smart homes and home health monitoring technologies is low; (2) the highest level of evidence is 1b (i.e., one randomized controlled trial with a PEDro score ≥6); smart homes and home health monitoring technologies are used to monitor activities of daily living, cognitive decline and mental health, and heart conditions in older adults with complex needs; (3) there is no evidence that smart homes and home health monitoring technologies help address disability prediction and health-related quality of life, or fall prevention; and (4) there is conflicting evidence that smart homes and home health monitoring technologies help address chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.ConclusionsThe level of technology readiness for smart homes and home health monitoring technologies is still low. The highest level of evidence found was in a study that supported home health technologies for use in monitoring activities of daily living, cognitive decline, mental health, and heart conditions in older adults with complex needs.