Older Adults' Medication Management in the Home: How can Robots Help?

Abstract

Successful management of medications is critical to maintaining healthy and independent living for older adults. However, medication non-adherence is a common problem with a high risk for severe consequences [5], which can jeopardize older adults' chances to age in place [1]. Well-designed robots assisting with medication management tasks could support older adults' independence. Design of successful robots will be enhanced through understanding concerns, attitudes, and preferences for medication assistance tasks. We assessed older adults' reactions to medication hand-off from a mobile manipulator robot with 12 participants (68-79 yrs). We identified factors that affected their attitudes toward a mobile manipulator for supporting general medication management tasks in the home. The older adults were open to robot assistance; however, their preferences varied depending on the nature of the medication management task. For instance, they preferred a robot (over a human) to remind them to take medications, but preferred human assistance for deciding what medication to take and for administering the medication. Factors such as perceptions of one's own capability and robot reliability influenced their attitudes.