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Development of an Intelligent Drinking System for the Prevention of Dehydration in Old Age

Authors:
Elisabeth Haslinger-Baumann
Anneliese Lilgenau
Katharina Gugenberger
Gernot Korak
Sebastian Geyer
Udo Unterweger
Stefan Tiefenbacher
Werner Franz

Keywords: Active and Assisting LIving; Health Care and Nursing; Dehydration Prevention; Interdisciplinary Research

Abstract:
This paper describes the user needs analysis for a system that supports the professional management of fluid balance in older people to prevent dehydration. Dehydration is a frequent age related issue that typically leads to a steep decrease in physical and / or mental performance. Severe cases are life threatening due to risks of circulatory collapse or loss of consciousness. Hence, the prevention of dehydration is of particular importance. For data gathering, social-scientific methods (individual interview, focus group interview, cultural probes and documentary research) were implemented. The survey involved primary end users (elderly, dependent people), secondary end users (informal and formal caregivers), experts from ethics and the analysis of care documentation from older users. The main results were derived from the data by using a thematic analysis and subsequent data fusion as well as consolidation concepts on result level. As a conclusion, aside of valuable system-specific recommendations, a concept for reminding and motivating could be designed and will be implemented.

Pages: 31 to 34

Copyright: Copyright (c) IARIA, 2017

Publication date: June 25, 2017

Published in: conference

ISSN: 2308-3727

ISBN: 978-1-61208-565-4

Location: Venice, Italy

Dates: from June 25, 2017 to June 29, 2017