Brazilian Chapter
4th Brazilian Congress of Gerontechnology - Technologies for an aging society
The event will take place from November 17 to 19, 2022, in a hybrid format. The first
day will be a face-to-face event with workshops and master classes, in São Carlos -
São Paulo. The two following days of congress will take place in a virtual environment, with keynote speakers, lectures and workshops.
The event has the objective of bringing together leading researchers who develop
studies in the field of Gerontechnology, graduate students who studies the themes
technologies, health and aging, professionals working in the field of Gerontology
and companies linked to products and services that contribute to the well-being,
comfort and safety of older people.
Besides the congress announced on the previous page (p.4), SBGTec members have
had their work published in scientific journals and books. Here are some
highlights:
Alvaro, S. S. O., Mello, L. A., Lilian Dias Bernardo, L. D., & Raymundo, T. M. (2022).
Navigating in virtual waves: barriers and facilitators for the digital inclusion of the
older adults. Research, Society and Development, 11(9), e19111931685.
Schmitz, E. D.,/Schmitz, N. V. S., & Doll, J. (2022): Older Workers –Younger Bosses:
Challenges in an Age Diverse Workplace in South Brazil. In: Gesellschaft –Individuum
–Sozialisation (GISo). Zeitschrift für Sozialisationsfor-schung, 3(1).
Sukar, R. S. N., Silva, C.C., Silva D. E. P., Silva, R.M., Pereira, L., Coriolano, M. G. W. S, &
Lins, C. C. S. A. (2022). Prática mental da escovação dental em pessoas com
Parkinson: estudo clínico randomizado. Brazilian Journal of Health Review, 5, 5543-
5555.
Pedro, W. J. A., Ogata, M. N., FRIZZO, H.C.F ; Frunival, A. C., & Orlandi, B. D. M. (2021). Acesso
e uso de Novas Tecnologias da Informação e Comunicação para a promoção do
envelhecimento ativo: para quê? Para quem?. In: André Pereira Neto, A., Flynn, M. B. (Org.).
Internet e saúde no Brasil: tendências e desafios. Cultura Acadêmica, 212-237.
Doll, J. (2022) Dealing with the Digital World. Challenges for the educational science. In:
Schmidt, M. (Org.). Kompendium Digitale Transformation Perspektiven auf einen
gesellschaftlichen Umbruch. UVG-Verlag, 41-53.
Castro, C. S. S. (2022) Gerontecnologia. In: Freitas, E. V., Py, L., Doll, J., Gorzoni, M. L., &
Mohallen, K. L. Tratado de Geriatria e Gerontologia. 5. ed. Rio de Janeiro: Guanabara
Koogan, 1397-1404.
Doll, J., Cachioni, M., &Machado, L. R. (2022). O Idoso e as Novas Tecnologias Digitais. In: Fn:
Freitas, E. V., Py, L., Doll, J., Gorzoni, M. L., Mohallen, K. L. Tratado de Geriatria e
Gerontologia. 5. ed. Rio de Janeiro: Guanabara Koogan, p. 1390-1396.
Machado, B. M., & Castro, C. S. S. Use of multisensory stimulation in institutionalized older adults
with moderate or severe dementia. (2022). Dement. neuropsychol. 16(2), 202-212.
Cruz, G. P., Pereira, L. S., & Raymundo, T. M. (2022). Cognitive training for elderly people without
cognitive impairment: an occupational therapy Intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cadernos Brasileiros de Terapia Ocupacional, 30, e3030.
Pizzetti, C. F., Fedeger, A. M., Oliveira, A. C. P., & Raymundo, T. M. (2022). Panorama do
Gerenciamento de Saúde por Idosos Residentes no Brasil: impacto das doenças crônicas não
transmissíveis no gerenciamento da saúde. Revista Interinstitucional Brasileira de Terapia
Ocupacional, 6, 939-956.
Dutch-Flemish Chapter
Publications
Huisman C, Huisman E, & Kort, H. (2022). Technological Applications Contributing to
Relieve Care Burden or to Sleep of Caregivers and People With Dementia: A Scoping
Review From the Perspective of Social Isolation. Front. Public Health 10:797176.
Austrian-German-Swiss Chapter
Research:
The interdisciplinary research center FUTURE AGING at Frankfurt University of Applied
Sciences published a video where project members of DoF-Adaptiv describe how a
robotic arm that helps people with limited arm function in everyday life can be
controlled more quickly and precisely in the future by anticipating intentions
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zx58LwNYMTI).
In the last FUTURE AGING Zoom round table Birgid Eberhard presented new findings
on her research on bathrooms suitable for nursing care in the private home. Looking
at health problems of nursing care staff and caring relatives a comprehensive survey
was carried out taking into account a variety of issues such as accessibility, assistance
of care persons, home automation and assistive technologies. The report can be
found: https://www.zvshk.de/qlink/QL48117582.
Results of a representative survey on the use and acceptance of digital
(assistance) technologies in the Autonomous Province of Bolzano (Italy)
The aim of the survey was to find out how digital (assistive) technologies are used and
accepted by middle-aged, older and very old people in a rural and multilingual Central
European region. The main areas of investigation were: (a) current use of (assistive)
technologies; (b) impact of the Covid19-pandemic on technology use; (c) getting
information about technologies; (d) usefulness ratings of nine assistive technologies
that differed in scope, market maturity, and privacy impact.
The survey guide was designed based on previous technology acceptance research
(including the Technology Acceptance Model) and included indicators of subjective
age, subjective health, care experience and quality of life. The survey was conducted
via computer-assisted telephone interviews with a random sample (N=616, age: 40-98)
in the province of Bolzano at the end of 2020. Multiple linear and binary logistic
regression analyses were used to identify the most robust predictors (all p<.05) in the
four study domains.
Results: (a) Persons with younger age, Italian main language (in contrast to German
and Ladin), higher education and higher general technology acceptance use more
(assistive) technologies; (b) especially younger persons and persons with higher
education use more technologies for information, communication and entertainment
during the corona pandemic; (c) most older people get information on technologies by
asking friends or family – this is almost the only source for them; (d) especially people
with Italian as their main language and high general technology acceptance perceive
the nine assistive technologies as useful.
The results make a relevant contribution to the body of findings in technology
acceptance research. They should be applied in the context of local measures such as
the compilation of a new provincial welfare plan and the establishment of counselling
centres that use case management for older people with care needs.
Ines Simbrig
Eurac Research
Institute for Public Management
T +39 0471 055 412
ines.simbrig@eurac.edu
Drususallee/Viale Druso 1
I-39100 Bozen/Bolzano
www.eurac.edu
Publications:
Merkel, Sebastian & Kucharski, Alexander (2022): "Echo, HomePod und Co. für ältere
Menschen - Digitale Assistenten als Gewinner der Pandemie?, in: Krämer, Dennis;
Haltaufderheide, Joschka; Vollmann, Jochen (Hg.): Technologien der Krise, Bielefeld, S.
155-174.
Hong Kong Great Bay Area Chapter
The spring of 2022 marks the fifth wave of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
outbreak in Hong Kong, a huge number of older adults (including many of those are
staying in residential care homes for the elderly) were sick or died.
The rapid and fierce pandemic wave is leading to an unprecedented crisis at the
elderly care services in Hong Kong which includes a restricted visiting arrangement is
being adopted in care homes for the elderly so family members of the residents are
not allowed to meet their beloved ones, the infection rate of the frontline staff is high
so there is a temporarily shortage of work force. These challenges seem to be more
critical when it comes to services for older adults with dementia.
To maintain the older adult to have higher emotional well-being, and to relieve
pressure of staff in this pandemic era, the “Jockey Club Smart Ageing Hub” community
project of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University has proactively developed a set of
two smart interactive dolls. By interacting with the dolls, the senior users, may enjoy
songs, short stories, Chinese poems, reminiscent stories for accompanying,
entertainment and cognitive training purposes.
Moreover, staff may record family member's voices to comfort the older adults. An
invention trial programme is officially launched in summer 2022, more than eighty
elderly care service units in Hong Kong had applied for the trial programme, implying
more than three thousand beneficiaries will be served
(https://www.polyu.edu.hk/Ageing/en/trialprogramme.php).
The invention trial programme in Hong Kong will mark the ISG (GBA Chapter)’s first
step towards a global footprint in meeting the social needs with innovative solutions
and promoting innovation in healthcare.
Student Chapter
The Student Chapter is facing an enlargement without precedents. The incoming conference ISG 2022 in Daegu, Korea, and the increasing relevance of the ISG in the research field have evoked the joining of four new members to the chapter.
As it is a tradition in the ISG, the members are from all globe around, from Netherland to Brazil, going by Spain. As a result, we are glad to welcome Chantal Huisman, Lorena Lorenzi and Patricia Bet. They are involved in their PhD projects, involving gerontechnology as a reference in their research.
Chantal Huisman is a PhD student at the University of Applied Sciences Utrecht. Her research is about supporting people with dementia to ageing in place by using nonpharmacological interventions and taking into account the care burden of informal caregivers. Chantal is working on her PhD for 1,5 years now.
Lorena Lorenzi and Patricia Bet are PhD students at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil. Both are involved in the Bioengineering research program and they are obtaining great recognition from the scientific community.
 
Their incorporation is great news for the Student Chapter, which keeps on reaching more and more people and gaining interest within the PhD community. It is a pleasure to count on them!
If you are a PhD student, an ISG member and want to be part of the Student Chapter, contact the president of the chapter, Manuel Jezús Azabal.
E-mail: manuel@unex.es
Iberian Chapter (in construction)
Although the Iberian Chapter has not been formally constituted as a chapter of the ISG yet, the Iberian community of gerontechnology is very active and is organizing several activities this year.
First of all, we are focused on the formal constitution of the chapter and we hope that we will be part of the ISG family very soon. In addition, we are also organizing a couple of Gerontechnology related events.
First, as part of the national conference on software technology we will have a Gerontechnology forum. This forum will serve as a meeting place for members of the Iberian chapter and a formal meeting of the chapter has been scheduled in the conference program so we can share it with the rest of the conference attendees.
More information: https://sistedes2022.spilab.es/jcis/#ambitos-y-foros
And second, we are organizing the 5th edition of our Gerontechnology workshop. It will take place in Evora, Portugal on November and will be a great opportunity to share research results about Gerontechnology and to meet more people interested in this topic.
More information: http://4ieplus.spilab.es/workshop-2021/
Dr. Jose Garcia-Alonso 
Future president elected
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