Executive Summary

Active Assisted Living (AAL) technologies are systems designed to improve the quality of life, aid in independence, and create healthier lifestyles for those who need assistance at any stage of their lives. As the population of older adults in Canada grows, there is a pressing need for non-intrusive, continuous, adaptable, and reliable health monitoring tools to support aging in place and to reduce health care costs. AAL technologies have great potential to support these efforts with the wide variety of solutions currently available, including solutions for home automation, assistive devices, and remote monitoring. However, more effort is required to address the concerns of older adults and their care providers arising from the integration of AAL into care.

This research report explores the integration of AAL technologies and data into the clinical pathway (continuum of care) and provides a model for the continuum of care in the context of the AAL technology ecosystem. In addition, it maps data access and governance for AAL technologies, providing innovators in the space with guidance on how to implement these solutions in the Canadian context, while protecting the privacy and well-being of seniors using AAL technologies. Finally, it presents the findings of the research and the opportunities for standards and guidelines that emerged.

Exploration of the two objectives was done through four successive research phases:

1. Conducting a literature search to survey existing work in this area and identify lessons learned;
2. Developing a model for the continuum of care within the context of AAL technologies;
3. Adapting a framework for data governance to the AAL context; and
4. Conducting interviews with stakeholders to validate and explore the applicability of the research findings.

Recurring themes that emerged from these four phases include a need for greater consistency in language and technology requirements across Canada, better role definition regarding who may have access to the data, identifying who is responsible for taking action based on the gathered data, and the recognition of the privacy–utility trade-off inherent in using AAL technologies in care settings.