The system created by the Sinclair School of Nursing and the College of Engineering at the University of Missouri uses cameras to track the movements of senior citizens and uses the data to predict a fall. The camera tracks the movement of a senior citizen (Photo via University of Missouri)
Home videos of people falling over are always good for a laugh, but as the old saying goes “it's funny until someone gets hurt.” The risk of falling down and seriously injuring yourself increases as you get older. For seniors, a fall means irreparable damage and reduced mobility. Perhaps the scariest thing about falling is you never know when it's going to happen. But that may be a thing of the past. A team at the Sinclair School of Nursing and the College of Engineering at the University of Missouri have created a sensor system that can predict falls.
The new device tracks the gait speed and stride length of the individual using cameras. By keeping track of this data, the system can help caregivers predict falls up to three weeks. During the development phase, the team referred to data taken from sensors systems at TigerPlace, which is a retirement home in Columbia, MO. Sensors installed at the facility watched walking patterns, seeing when residents slowed down or shortened their stride. If something's out of the norm, images are generated and email alerts are sent to nurses and caregivers.
Researchers found an 86.3 percent chance of falling associated with a gait speed decline of five centimeters per second. Data also showed a 50.6 percent chance of falling within the next three weeks was associated with a shortened stride. By putting this motion sensor system in place at TigerPlace, the study showed residents had a higher chance of living independently on average for four years compared to the national average of 22 months.
You probably won't see the system being installed in other retirement homes at this time. There are more kinks to work out and more fine tuning to do. The team will focus further research on how nurses and caregivers can use the fall prediction data to stop the fall before it happens.
This system has the potential to make a big difference with senior living and care. Many seniors are seriously injured and immobilized due to accidents. If we can use this system to decrease the number of falls, it can not only keep our seniors safe, it can let them live independently for a longer time. This new system shows how technology is keeping senior's health in mind. See? Technology isn't just for the young.
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