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DIME PROJECT

Aging in Place of Choice with Connected Health Technologies

From AgeTech innovation to sustainable implementation

The Playbook for Healthcare Providers

Selecting and implementing AgeTech that meets the needs of older adults and care partners

Many of the organizations best positioned to benefit from AgeTech are also the ones with the least capacity to evaluate and implement it.

This playbook helps healthcare providers select and implement AgeTech products to support older adults aging in place of choice by addressing two questions:

  1. Where does AgeTech create clinical and financial value for your organization?

  2. How should products be evaluated to ensure they are appropriate for the older adults you serve and practical for your care team to use?

Our workshops and grey literature review revealed that under-resourced organizations more often lack the staff, time, and formal roles needed to lead this kind of work, and that a single motivated clinician or staff member, rather than a dedicated technology team, is often the one who ends up championing adoption. This playbook is built with that reality in mind. The tools that follow are designed so that one person can work through them over a few focused sessions, and each section is designed so you can complete only the pieces most relevant to your current decision rather than the entire playbook at once.

Why does AgeTech often fail to move beyond a pilot?

This playbook highlights two gaps that explain why many AgeTech implementations fail to scale in health care settings.

Lack of a structured approach for selecting AgeTech products that both benefit older adults and fit into clinical workflows

SOLUTION: TECHNOLOGY SELECTION

This section will provide tools to help you assess AgeTech products and select options that are more likely to work for older adults, their families, and health care teams.ⓘ The growing number of AgeTech products can make it challenging for healthcare providers to identify solutions that are effective, usable, and ready for implementation.

A strong AgeTech product should have evidence supporting the specific health or operational outcome it is intended to improve. It should give care teams timely, actionable information without adding unnecessary data or administrative burden. Finally, it should integrate with existing systems and workflows in a way that supports sustainable implementation at scale.

Go to technology selection

Failure to clearly articulate the opportunity and build a sustainable business case

SOLUTION: BUSINESS CASE

This section will help you navigate reimbursement pathways and opportunities to build a business case that can support long term and impactful use of AgeTech.ⓘ A successful technology pilot does not always lead to a sustainable program. To scale AgeTech, healthcare providers need a clear understanding of how the technology supports their clinical and financial goals over time. If leaders cannot see how a technology fits the organization’s business model, they may not feel convinced that the investment is needed. A strong business case connects a technology’s clinical value to the financial reality executive teams must manage.

Go to business case

How AgeTech can help health care teams support older adults

Monitor health and function between visits to catch meaningful changes that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Support everyday health management, including medication routines, mobility, and other activities of daily living.

Identify potential concerns earlier so care teams can intervene before they become more serious.

Bring the right information to older adults, care partners, and care teams at the right time, within the care team’s existing workflow.

With healthcare facing a flood of vendor choices, it is hard to identify technologies that meet clinical quality standards and improve health outcomes that are meaningful to older adults. Providers must also find products that align with their business model, support long-term growth, and integrate into daily workflows without adding to staff burden.

What’s next?

Learn more about selecting the right AgeTech product.

Go to Technology selection