REACH is about to apply its concept and technologies to early intervention in new fields such as dementia

23-11-18 Rongbo Hu 0 comment

REACH considers a continuum from a healthy state to having a condition to address physical inactivity and risks and risk factors resulting from it. REACH is in a proactive technology-induced manner targeting these 5 points with regard to physical activity as a primary risk factor for a variety of age-related conditions that may occur in later life (diabetes, heart attack, stroke, dementia, etc.):

  1. Prevention (when subjects are obviously healthy)
  2. Prediction (predict e.g. through pattern recognition a likelihood if someone may develop the condition in the future)
  3. Early diagnosis (detect first signs so that counteracting can start as early as possible)
  4. Early intervention (effective fast intervention once first signs detected)
  5. Monitoring/intervention (effective intervention during having the condition)

In order to increase its impact and possibilities for exploitation, REACH started to develop (and make scenarios for the application of its concept to the field of dementia:

  1. Prevention: REACH Touchpoints 3 (ZZ) and 4 (Lyngby) target the elderly in activity centres and care homes and those who need home care to detect the declining correlation between physical activity and cognitive abilities, and aim to increase both of them through REACH involvement, e.g. by active movement trainings, Playware Tiles gameplay, mental exercises, and support of social contacts, etc.
  2. Prediction: Predict e.g. through pattern recognition a likelihood if someone may develop the condition in the future (e.g. in some weeks, months, or years, …). A differentiation must be made between the normal decline in the aging process and first symptoms of dementia
  3. Prediction and early diagnosis: REACH’s sensors and technologies can provide an early diagnosis to a certain group of people who are identified by pre-screening and some indication criteria as having a risk to develop dementia.
  4. Early intervention: Fast early intervention directly after diagnosis with ambient systems such as sensors, devices, smart furniture at home can prevent adverse events from happening, for instance, falls or consequences caused by a cognitive decline (e.g. fire alarms due to forgetting to turn off the stove, etc.). These may cause worse results and even the related people eventually are required professional care or a transfer to institutionalised care. Therefore, REACH Touchpoints 1 (HUG) and 2 (SK) are developed as effective early interventions to help with this context in applicable conditions.
  5. Monitoring/intervention: Technology-based monitoring and intervention during the course of dementia can help to mitigate the impact and pressure of the disease on caregivers and the healthcare system. Touchpoint 1 and Touchpoint 2 technologies can help increase patients’ self-management and reduce healthcare assistance and cost.


Leave a reply