Smart applications are fast becoming a vital tool in the provision of aged care

From dementia education and virtual companionship to physical activities and entertainment, mobile applications are becoming increasingly present in the provision of aged care in Australia.

The Department of Health and Aged Care has recently announced a two year trial of its SPACED app, designed to support Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) providers to "better understand what supports exist, where and how to access them, and who to contact for more information."

More and more mobile applications are providing care workers with education and support, and older people with social interaction and entertainment. Smartphones may soon even be able to detect if someone is having a stroke.

"But given all of the constraints we have on our system in terms of money and time and lack of resources, I believe that digital technologies can absolutely better support the care workforce, so that when they are with a person, they're delivering the best [care] they possibly can."

Dr Petrovich shared Dementia Australia's ideas for future versions of the app, in which artificial intelligence (AI) will be able to assist carers with complex problems in real time.

"We have a vision that Annie can actually become a virtual mentor. And what we're aiming to do is create an avatar that you can actually have a conversation with," she said.

"When a person living with dementia exhibits a change behaviour, an aged care worker can often be uncertain as to how to respond to that. So Annie is to be built with a decision matrix that will help you by asking you questions of what's happening and then giving you possible strategies for ways forward."

Funded by the Australian Research Council, the fEEL Lab predominantly looks at developing applications of immersive media and AI technology in relation to ageing, dementia, mental health and wellbeing.

 ARC laureate Scientia Professor Jill Bennett said this relatively new technology is already making a difference to the lives of people with dementia and their carers.

"We have a working character who can chat and converse, and people love it. It's in use, but we are working on refining a character that can really respond to people's emotional needs and work on the challenges of loneliness," Professor Bennett said.

Viv is now being trialed with selected residential aged care facilities, both on a life-sized portrait screen and on iPads, as a tool to increase residents' capacity to connect with others and foster quality relationships. Whether that be through the character itself, or building skills to make connections with other people.

"In age care, you can have very good models of care, but you're never going to have round the clock one-to-one capacity for carers to sit with people on demand for extended periods," Professor Bennett said.

"The role of calm, reassuring conversation is really critical [for people with dementia]. It could be the difference between mounting distress and anxiety and enabling people to sort of self-regulate and calm themselves and maintain their equilibrium.

"This is to fill a gap, not to take the place of human contact or having a pet. Those things are very important. It's a way of extending top quality person-centered care, it has to be seen as part of the larger care ecosystem."

The fEEl Lab will continue their work with the development of a male character, and others, to expand the potential of Viv and improve the lives of those living with dementia.

Below is a list of mobile applications designed to help older people, their family, friends and carers:

For carers:

• CareApp: A communication app designed to increase increase transparency and accountability in aged care. Bringing together providers, residents, care workers, and families.
• palliAGED apps: An app designed specifically for providing aged care workers, nurses and GPs with access to support and information related to palliative care.
• CareKeeper: An app developed to enables residential aged care staff to easily manage their task lists and to document by the resident’s side via a mobile device.
• Dementia-friendly home app: A 3D game that is designed to aid carers in making homes more accessible for people living with dementia.

For families and friends:

• A Better Visit: is a collection of games designed to foster connection between people living with dementia and their visitors.

For older people:

• BrainTrack: an app that can help you focus on brain health and healthy ageing. Braintrack is designed to help people better identify and modify their lifestyle to reduce the risk of cognitive decline in later life.