Achieving person-centredness through technologies supporting integrated care for older people living at home: an integrative review

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify the range, type and outcomes of technological innovations aimed at supporting older people to maintain their independence within the context of integrated care at home. We also discuss key emergent themes relevant to the use of person-centred technology for older people in integrated care and propose recommendations for policy and practice.Design/methodology/approachAn integrative review methodology was used to identify and describe recent scientific publications in four stages: problem identification, literature search, data evaluation and data analysis.FindingsTwelve studies were included in the review. Three studies described remote consultations, particularly telemedicine;five studies described tools to support self-management;three studies described the use of healthcare management tools, and one study described both remote consultation and self-care management. Emergent themes were: acceptability, accessibility and use of digital technologies;co-ordination and integration of services;the implementation of digital technologies;and safety and governance. Several recommendations are proposed relevant to integrated care teams, technology developers and researchers.Originality/valueThis review uniquely considers the extent to which novel digital technologies used in integrated care for older people are person-centred.