Aging with Agency: Real-World Insights into Robot-Assisted Self-Health Monitoring for Older Adults

Abstract

To enable the successful deployment of autonomously usable health monitoring systems for older adults in uncontrolled, real-life environments, high levels of usability and user experience are essential. This work presents the findings of an eight-week field test of a social robot-assisted health monitoring system with older adults in assisted living. The results indicate high interest and usability, with users learning to interact with the system components and gaining a better understanding of the system over time. We give a first indication of the prerequisites for the use of such systems in the real world: The importance of the involvement of the right target group motivated to use such a system and the participatory design and development of such systems. Finally, we propose design features that can motivate older adults to use such systems in the long term, to support their self-care and contribute to their health literacy.