Business Week--"Aging In Place" special report--Intel, GE, Philips

Business Week addresses 'aging in place' with a multi-part special technology report, largely highlighting telecare/telehealth initiatives by Fortune 50 companies--Intel, GE and Philips. Sadly they skip over the small companies driving innovation in the field, who could use the attention, except for Living Independently Group (QuietCare), but the focus in that article is on the outcomes of the GE investment.  

Intel Health Guide--Intel Wants You to Age Gracefully, at Home  After four years, Intel seems to be getting traction with Health Guide, but it remains largely in test. Mr Lang being stripped of his Health Guide after one of these tests is certainly a disappointing finish that begs the question.  The loss was not the device, but the monitoring/assessment by a health professional.  Devices can generate, accumulate and chart data, but who will be watching? 

QuietCare--GE, LIG Team Up on Home Monitoring  Another example of the difficulty small telecare/telehealth companies can have without a mega-partner--and the 'mega' needing technology to catch up to companies like Philips.  It is fairly rosy but cannot help pointing out that the strategy change to senior community sales (always a part of LIG sales) came just as seniors stopped moving into senior communities, and now misses the burgeoning home market. Not mentioned is that the distress of the senior housing sector started in mid-2008 through leveraged real estate investments and lack of capital. (Disclosure:  I worked for LIG as VP Marketing during this time)   Correction:  Jim Caci, quoted in article, is Chief Operating Officer, not CMO, of LIG.  Video

Philips--Philips Takes the Lead in Home Health Care.  This is the best developed article of the three. With four divisions spanning in-facility and in-home (Lifeline, Healthwatch, Telehealth Solutions), they are moving from acquisition to development.  The largest is Motiva, an in-home interactive patient monitoring system in a 1000 patient test with the NHS.  Similar to Intel Health Guide in monitoring vital signs and feeding information to clinicians via a series of questions, it instead uses home television and broadband for messaging and monitoring.