Retirement home staff and residents' preferences for healthcare robots

Abstract

As the proportion of people in the older age groups grows, demands on care providers increase. The ability of robotic technology to meet these demands is limited by a lack of acceptance by older people. This study investigates which tasks staff and residents in a retirement village would like a robot to assist with, as well as their attitudes towards robots and preferences for their appearance. Findings show that residents are more positive about robots than staff, and participants prefer a silver robot of 1.25 m height, with wheels and a screen on the body. Residents would most like the robot to assist with detecting falls, turning on and off appliances, lifting, cleaning, medication reminding, making phone calls and monitoring location. Making robots that fit these preferences may increase the acceptance of robotic assistants by older people.