We’ve long heard about how seniors didn’t have smartphones and so they wouldn’t have access to all these incredible mobile health apps and sensors that are tied to the smartphone. In some respects this is true and I’ve always argued that it didn’t really matter, because their caregivers (often their children) is going to be the one using it and they use smart phones. It’s an important discussion since our seniors make up a large chunk of healthcare spending.
This tweet from David Doherty had me stop and think about this subject again.
Met a 95 year old using an iPhone loaded with apps today. Remember people thought that would never happen?https://t.co/4OAow5OFWi #mHealth
— mHealth Insight (@mHealthInsight) August 18, 2016
It’s true that in many ways the tablets and smartphones have gotten so easy to use that even older people are using them for all sorts of amazing things. Would you rather teach a senior to use an iPad or a desktop computer? As someone who once was hired by an elderly couple to teach them how to use their computer in college, I’d much rather have taught them how to use the iPad or smartphone. It would have been so much easier.
We have to remember that Seniors still have an insatiable desire to be connected to the ones they love. That’s why they care about these technologies and are willing to learn them. Adding on some health related applications is an easy next step.
I still think there’s an interesting market out there for customized tablets for seniors that make them even easier, but like David it’s interesting to see how tablets and smartphones have become so usable that seniors of all ages are using them. This trend will only increase and more seniors will be using this technology.
