Do Socially Assistive Robots Help in Caring for Elderly Patients with Frailty or Mild Cognitive Impairment?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47611/jsrhs.v12i3.4821Keywords:
social assistive robots, frailty, mild cognitive impairment, elderly patientsAbstract
The burgeoning elderly population, set to double by 2050 worldwide, will place immense demand on provision of elderly care. The mismatch in supply and demand of social care, made worse by the recent Covid-19 pandemic, has heightened the search for viable adjuncts to social care. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore the possible role of socially assistive robots (SAR) in care of elderly patients with frailty or mild cognitive impairment. In the past decade, SAR has emerged as a possible contender for assisted care. Through interviews with frontline NHS clinical stakeholders, review of research articles and visit to the Robot House research facility in the University of Hertfordshire, this project has identified the barriers, limitations to SARs and ethical challenges that needs addressing before the mainstream implementation of SARs to assist in care of the elderly. It is imperative to establish SARs’ safety profile and effectiveness through end-user inclusive, robustly designed, randomized clinical trials addressing the contextual factors of SAR implementation. Particular care and attention should be devoted to ensuring that future studies are enrolled with adequate numbers of participants to achieve statistically significant outcomes of SAR safety and acceptability. With paucity of social care workers and an ever-increasing population of older age adults, SARs will have a potential role to play in supporting the independence and dignity of elderly people in their own environment. SARs offer hope amidst the current social care despair, and further research is key to their eventual success in aged care, which may be years away from reality.
Downloads
References or Bibliography
Abdi J, Al-Hindawi A, Ng T, et al.(2018). Scoping review on the use of socially assistive robot technology in elderly care. BMJ Open;8:e018815. doi:10.1136/ bmjopen-2017-018815
Accompany (2011). Projects & Results | Cordis | European Commission. Available at: https://cordis.europa.eu/projects.
Asimov, 1 (2018). I, robot. Encyclopædia Britannica. Available at: https://www.britannica.com/topic/I-Robot.
Alzheimer’s Association. 2020 Alzheimer’s disease facts and figures. Alzheimers. Dement. 2020, 16, 391–460. (accessed on 29 November 2022).
Bemelmans R, Gelderblom GJ, Jonker P, de Witte L. Socially assistive robots in elderly care: a systematic review into effects and effectiveness. J Am Med Dir Assoc. 2012 Feb;13(2):114-120.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.jamda.2010.10.002. Epub 2010 Dec 15. PMID: 21450215.
Beuscher M, Fan D.L, Sarkar MJ, Dietrich, D. M., A. Newhouse, D. P., F. Miller, M. K., & C. Mion, D. L. (2017). Socially Assistive Robots: Measuring Older Adults’ Perceptions. Journal of gerontological nursing, 43(12), 35. https://doi.org/10.3928/00989134-20170707-04
Boada JP, Maestre BM, Genís CT.(2021) The ethical issues of social assistive robotics: A critical literature review,Technology in Society,Volume 67,101726,ISSN 0160-791X,https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2021.101726.
Bosmans, J.; Jorissen, C.; Cras, P.; Van Ombergen, A.; Engelborghs, S.; Gilles, A.; Princen, E.; Moyaert, J.; Mertens, G.; Van Rompaey, V. Impact of hearing loss and vestibular decline on cognition in Alzheimer’s disease: A prospective longitudinal study protocol (Gehoor, Evenwicht en Cognitie, GECkO). BMJ Open 2020, 10, e039601. (accessed on 29 November 2022).
Broadbent, E.; Stafford, R.; MacDonald, B. Acceptance of healthcare robots for the older population: Review and future directions. Int. J. Soc. Robot. 2009, 1, 319–330.
Broadbent E., Kuo I. H., Lee Y. I., et al. Attitudes and reactions to a healthcare robot. Telemedicine and e-Health . 2010;16(5):608–613. doi: 10.1089/tmj.2009.0171.
Dunne, R.A.; Aarsland, D.; O’Brien, J.T.; Ballard, C.; Banerjee, S.; Fox, N.C.; Isaacs, J.D.; Underwood, B.R.; Perry, R.J.; Chan, D.; et al. Mild cognitive impairment: The Manchester consensus. Age Ageing 2021, 50, 72–80. (accessed on 29 November 2022).
Emergence (2015) EMERGENCE. Available at: https://www.emergencerobotics.net/.
European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing. Action plan on prevention and early diagnosis of frailty and func- tional decline, both physical and cognitive in older people. Brussels: European Union; 2012. (accessed on 29 November 2022).
European Union (EU) The Member States (2021), Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, (2012)https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt1ffjmjq.33.
Forluzzi J (2007). The product ecology: Understanding social product use and supporting design culture. The Journal of Design. Available at: http://www.ijdesign.org/index.php/IJDesign/article/view/220/143.
Flandorfer P. Population ageing and socially assistive robots for elderly persons: the importance of sociodemographic factors for user acceptance. International Journal of Population Research . 2012;2012:1–13. doi: 10.1155/2012/829835.829835
He Y, He Q, Liu Q. Technology Acceptance in Socially Assistive Robots: Scoping Review of Models, Measurement, and Influencing Factors. J Healthc Eng. 2022 Jul 22;2022:6334732. doi: 10.1155/2022/6334732. PMID: 35911583; PMCID: PMC9337973.
Heerink, M.; Kröse, B.; Evers, V.; Wielinga, B. Assessing acceptance of assistive social agent technology by older Adults: The almere model. Int. J. Soc. Robot. 2010, 2, 361–375. (accessed on 29 November 2022).
Holt-Lunstad J, Smith TB, Layton JB. Social relationships and mortality risk: a meta-analytic review. PLoS Med 2010;7:7
Keeble E, Roberts HC, Williams CD, Van Oppen J, Conroy SP. Outcomes of hospital admissions among frail older people: a 2-year cohort study. Br J Gen Pract. 2019 Aug;69(685):e555-e560. doi: 10.3399/bjgp19X704621. Epub 2019 Jul 15. PMID: 31308000; PMCID: PMC6650131.
Koh, W.Q., Felding, S.A., Budak, K.B. et al. (2021). Barriers and facilitators to the implementation of social robots for older adults and people with dementia: a scoping review. BMC Geriatr 21, 351://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-021-02277-9
Koutentakis, D., Pilozzi, A., & Huang, X. (2020). Designing Socially Assistive Robots for Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia Patients and Their Caregivers: Where We Are and Where We Are Headed. Healthcare, 8(2). https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare8020073
Krumholz HM. Post-hospital syndrome--an acquired, transient condition of generalized risk. N Engl J Med. 2013 Jan 10;368(2):100-2. doi: 10.1056/NEJMp1212324. PMID: 23301730; PMCID: PMC3688067.
Lette, M., Stoop, A., Gadsby, E., Ambugo, E.A., Mateu, N.C., Reynolds, J., Nijpels, G., Baan, C. and de Bruin, S.R., 2020. Supporting Older People to Live Safely at Home – Findings from Thirteen Case Studies on Integrated Care Across Europe. International Journal of Integrated Care, 20(4), p.1.DOI: https://doi.org/10.5334/ijic.5423
Leite I, Martinho C, Paiva A. (2013) Social robots for long-term interaction: A survey. Int. J. Soc. Robot. 5, 291–308.
Łukasik S, Tobis S, Suwalska J, Łojko D, Napierała M, Proch M, Neumann-Podczaska A, Suwalska A.(2021) The Role of Socially Assistive Robots in the Care of Older People: To Assist in Cognitive Training, to Remind or to Accompany? Sustainability. 13(18):10394. https://doi.org/10.3390/su131810394
Macis, E, Gena C. (2022). Employing socially assistive robots in elderly care. Available at: https://dl.acm.org/doi/fullHtml/10.1145/3511047.3537687.
Matarić MJ. Socially assistive robotics: Human augmentation versus automation. Sci Robot. 2017 Mar 15;2(4):eaam5410. doi: 10.1126/scirobotics.aam5410. PMID: 33157869.
Morato, J.; Sanchez-Cuadrado, S.; Iglesias, A.; Campillo, A.; Fernández-Panadero, C. Sustainable technologies for older adults. Sustainability 2021, 13, 8465. (accessed on 29 November 2022)
Mutlu B, Osman S, Forlizzi J, Hodgins J and Kiesler S. (2006) "Task Structure and User Attributes as Elements of Human-Robot Interaction Design," ROMAN 2006 - The 15th IEEE International Symposium on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, Hatfield, UK, pp. 74-79, doi: 10.1109/ROMAN.2006.314397.
Papadopoulos C, Castro N, Nigath A, Davidson R, Faulkes N, Menicatti R, Khaliq AA, Recchiuto C, Battistuzzi L, Randhawa G, Merton L, Kanoria S, Chong NY, Kamide H, Hewson D, Sgorbissa A. (2022). The CARESSES Randomised Controlled Trial: Exploring the Health-Related Impact of Culturally Competent Artificial Intelligence Embedded Into Socially Assistive Robots and Tested in Older Adult Care Homes. Int J Soc Robot. (1):245-256. doi: 10.1007/s12369-021-00781-x. Epub 2021 Apr 23. PMID: 33907589; PMCID: PMC8062829.
Papadopoulos, I., Wright, S., Koulouglioti, C., Ali, S., Lazzarino, R., Martín-García, Á., Oter-Quintana, C., Kouta, C., Rousou, E., Papp, K., Krepinska, R., Tothova, V., Malliarou, M., Apostolara, P., Lesińska-Sawicka, M., Nagorska, M., Liskova, M., Nortvedt, L., Alpers, M., . . . Nissim, S. (2023). Socially assistive robots in health and social care: Acceptance and cultural factors. Results from an exploratory international online survey. Japan Journal of Nursing Science, 20(2), e12523. https://doi.org/10.1111/jjns.12523
Patel, H.P. et al. (2017) Epidemiology of sarcopenia and frailty, IntechOpen. Available at: https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/56116.
Pino M, Boulay M, Jouen F, Rigaud AS. "Are we ready for robots that care for us?" Attitudes and opinions of older adults toward socially assistive robots. Front Aging Neurosci. 2015 Jul 23;7:141. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2015.00141. PMID: 26257646; PMCID: PMC4512026.
Rabbitt SM, Kazdin AE , Scassellati B (2015). Integrating socially assistive robotics into mental healthcare interventions: Applications and recommendations for expanded use. Clin. Psychol. Rev. 35, 35–46.
Santos-Eggimann B, Cuénoud P, Spagnoli J, Junod J. Prevalence of frailty in middle-aged and older community-dwelling Europeans living in 10 countries. J Gerontol Ser A Biol Med Sci. 2009;64A: 675–81. https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glp012. (accessed on 29 November 2022).
Thomas J. Insights into Loneliness, Older People and Well-being. 2015:1–10 http://backup.ons.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/ 2015/10/Insights-into-Loneliness-Older-People-and-Well-being2015.pdf.
United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) (1948), Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs. World Population Ageing 2017—Highlights; United Nations: New York, NY, USA, 2017. Available online: https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications/pdf/ageing/ WPA2017_Highlights.pdf.
United Nations. Global Issues—Ageing. 2019. Available online: https://www.un.org/en/global-issues/ageing.
Vandemeulebroucke T, de Casterlé BD, Gastmans C. (2018) How do older adults experience and perceive socially assistive robots in aged care: a systematic review of qualitative evidence. Aging Ment Health. 2018 Feb;22(2):149-167. doi: 10.1080/13607863.2017.1286455. PMID: 28282732.
Vallverdú, J., Casacuberta, D. (2015). Ethical and Technical Aspects of Emotions to Create Empathy in Medical Machines. In: van Rysewyk, S., Pontier, M. (eds) Machine Medical Ethics. Intelligent Systems, Control and Automation: Science and Engineering, vol 74. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-08108-3_20
Victor C, Scambler S, Bond J, et al. social isolation and living alone in later life. Rev Clin Gerontol 2000;10:407–17
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Copyright (c) 2023 Shriyaa Arunachalam
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Copyright holder(s) granted JSR a perpetual, non-exclusive license to distriute & display this article.
