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What Robots Can—and Can’t—Do for the Old and Lonely

What Robots Can—and Can’t—Do for the Old and Lonely

Virginia Kellner got the cat last November, around her ninety-second birthday, and now it’s always nearby. It keeps her company as she moves, bent over her walker, from the couch to the bathroom and back again. The walker has a pair of orange scissors hanging from the handlebar, for opening mail. Virginia likes the pet’s green eyes. She likes that it’s there in the morning, when she wakes up. Sometimes, on days when she feels sad, she sits in her soft armchair and rests the cat on her soft stomach and just lets it do its thing. Nuzzle. Stretch. Vibrate. 

Ageless Innovation Introduces The “Walker Squawker™”: An Animatronic Bird Created To Bring Joy And Companionship To Older Adults

Ageless Innovation Introduces The “Walker Squawker™”: An Animatronic Bird Created To Bring Joy And Companionship To Older Adults

Ageless Innovation LLC, a global company devoted to reimagining how we positively live and age together through the power of play, today unveiled the Walker Squawker – a cheery, artfully crafted animatronic bird created to deliver joy, fun, and companionship to older adults and their families. Designed to perch playfully atop of walking devices, this realistic bird aims to create a more positive relationship between older adults and their walkers.

Invented by 93-year-old Rita Melone, an older adult determined to improve her own experience with her walker, the Walker Squawker was designed to serve as a playful reminder to use one’s walker by providing the user with an interactive and personalized “sidekick.” When placed on a walker, the Walker Squawker will sing and play songs as older loved ones move along, ultimately providing joy and fun through playful sounds, interactions, and companionship. Complete with state-of-the-art technology that allows it to look, move, and sound like the real thing, the goal of the responsive companion is to encourage people to want to use their walkers by providing older adults and their families with lively entertainment and enjoyable interactions.

“After more than 90 years of walking without assistance, I would often forget to use my walker,” said Rita Melone, the inventor of Walker Squawker. “Walkers can be so cumbersome and dull – I wanted to create a device that would make the experience more fun and enjoyable for me and my friends. I thought to myself ‘what could be better than having a cute little feathered friend to come along for the ride?’”

Ageless Innovation has worked tirelessly to deliver enjoyable experiences to older adults and their families through unique product offerings, beginning with the Joy for All Companion Pet Pups and Cats. The launch of the Walker Squawker will follow suit, and comes at a key time when social isolation, loneliness, and physical and cognitive decline among older adults is at an all-time high since the practices of social distancing were put in place due to COVID-19 restrictions.

“Ageless Innovation prides itself on designing products that are based on extensive input from older adults,” said Ted Fischer, Co-Founder and CEO of Ageless Innovation. “When this incredibly intelligent and spunky 93-year-old woman approached us with the idea of the Walker Squawker, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to create a new product that would deliver smiles and joy to Rita and her peers. We are honored to partner with Rita to bring her invention to life.”

The birds include a tactile and highly detailed fabric exterior, a wide range of songs and authentic native sounds, a motion sensor that recognizes and rewards walking, ChirpBack Technology™ which allows the birds to respond to the sound of your voice, and a variety of other sensors to maximize lifelike interactivity. Each product will also include a universal perch designed to fit most walking devices.

The Walker Squawker will be available for purchase on JoyForAll.com as well as at select retailers in Fall 2021. The product will be available in two styles – Cardinal and Blue Bird. For additional information about the Joy For All Companion Pets, visit https://joyforall.com/ and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

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About Ageless Innovation
Ageless Innovation is a global company devoted to developing fun and engaging products for older adults. Beginning with the award-winning line of Joy for All Companion Pets, Ageless Innovation is focused on creating products that promote fun, joy and play while reducing the cost of care and creating meaningful connections for older adults, their families, and caregivers. For more information, visit http://www.joyforall.com.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Litzky Public Relations: Marisa Papa; [email protected]; 973-647-5339

Reducing loneliness and improving well-being among older adults with animatronic pets

Reducing loneliness and improving well-being among older adults with animatronic pets

Abstract

Background

Studies consistently demonstrate that older adults who are lonely have higher rates of depression and increased mortality risk. Pet ownership may be a solution for loneliness; however, challenges related to pet ownership exist for older adults. Therefore, researchers and practitioners are examining the use of animatronic pets to reduce loneliness.

Objective

To determine the feasibility of an animatronic pet program, and whether ownership of animatronic pets would decrease loneliness and improve well-being among lonely older adults.

Methods

Eligible individuals were identified as lonely through a prior survey. Participants were provided with the choice of an animatronic pet and completed T1/T2/T3 surveys.

Results

Attrition was high; 168 (63%) participants completed T1/T2 surveys, and 125 (48%) also completed a T3 survey. Post survey data indicated that loneliness decreased, while mental well-being, resilience, and purpose in life improved. Frequent interactions with the pets were associated with greater improvement in mental well-being and optimism.

Conclusions

Animatronic pets appear to provide benefits for the well-being of lonely older adults. Future studies should employ randomized controlled designs examining the impact of animatronic pets.

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New Approaches for the Treatment of Delirium: A Case for Robotic Pets

New Approaches for the Treatment of Delirium: A Case for Robotic Pets

Delirium is highly prevalent in hospitalized patients and is a strong and consistent negative predictor of length of stay, mortality, and long-term cognitive outcomes.

 Symptoms commonly associated with delirium include reduced ability to focus, sleep disturbances, psychomotor agitation, and emotional disturbances. The management of the behavioral disturbances of delirium is challenging. Although non-pharmacologic means to reduce the duration or severity of delirium are advocated, there are limited established therapies beyond early physical mobilization, reorientation, attempting to enhance natural sleep patterns, and bedside sitting.

Recently, the use of robotic pets has been reported to be helpful in reducing agitation in nursing home patients with dementia.

 Given that dementia is a major risk factor for delirium, it is reasonable to speculate whether such devices could be useful in a hospital setting. To this end, we initiated a pilot study to assess the feasibility of using robotic pets as a non-pharmacologic behavioral intervention for intensive care unit (ICU) patients with delirium.

We recruited 20 subjects with ICU delirium, at our hospital, from July 2017 to December 2017. The institutional review board approved the study. Delirium was confirmed using the Confusion Assessment Method for the ICU scale.

 After written informed consent was obtained from the subject’s proxy, the subject received a new “Joy for All” robotic cat (Hasbro, Pawtucket, RI). The cat is battery-operated and can purr, meow, and react to touch. The family and bedside nurse were encouraged to use the cat with the subject (Figure). At 3 days post-enrollment, the subject (if able) and family (if available) were asked to complete a 5-question survey and to provide unstructured feedback. The same survey was e-mailed to all ICU nurses, support staff, and clinicians (n ∼ 400). Survey questions were graded on a 5-point Likert scale (from 1 [“strongly disagree”] to 5 [“strongly agree”]). Twenty-three surveys were returned from subjects and their families, and 70 were returned from ICU support staff.

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Robotic Pet Therapy Improves Outcomes for Hospitalized Older Adults

Robotic Pet Therapy Improves Outcomes for Hospitalized Older Adults

This randomized controlled trial at an inner city community hospital examined the effect of a robotic pet (cat or dog) on cognition, loneliness, depression, delirium, falls, restraint use, and 1:1 companion use in 160 adults over age 65. The study utilized robotic pets which have an audible heartbeat and interact by purring or barking, turning their heads, opening/closing their eyes, snuggling, wagging their tails, moving their paws, and showing their bellies.

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