Should Visitability Be A Federal Law?

Visitable Home - no step entry Visitability is an important strategy for developing accessible housing. It can contribute to creating neighborhoods and communities that welcome everyone. There is a huge market of 78.2 million Baby Boomers who may soon need affordable and accessible homes. Designing homes with open floor plans, U-shaped kitchens with maneuvering space for food preparation, bathrooms with [...]

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Gibbons’ First Five Health Technology Trends for 2010

Chris Gibbons, Associate Director, John Hopkins Urban Health Institute: "If we are serious about developing technology solutions for healthcare problems, we must have a greater focus on the users (patients, caregivers as well as providers) and their problems, issues, needs and concerns. We must then use this information to develop effective technology solutions for user defined needs." Following are his first 5 predictions for 2010 healthcare technology trends:

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Is the UK out in front of others, including the US, when it comes to smart homes, telecare and telehealthcare technology adoption?

George MacGinnis on the difference between telecare and telehealth: In terms of telecare we think of tele-social care. The main focus is on managing risks to peoples’ lives. They might have a panic button, a fall sensor and these might be people who are suffering from dementia. There are risks that they might leave the oven on and create a fire, so there are remote control fire detectors or remote gas shut off valves, etc. Whereas [telehealth] is much more about chronic disease management: Diabetics might be checking their sugar, others might be checking peak flows, blood pressure or weighing themselves and answering questions about their health.

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