IAHSA Executive Director, Katie Smith Sloan, recently participated in the inaugural Global Aging & Technology Summit sponsored by the UNC Gillings School of Global Health, Cambridge University, MIT AgeLab, and Carol Woods Retirement Community, an IAHSA member.  Forty-six experts from around the world gathered to:

- Share research and perspectives on how promising technologies can help older adults retain health, independence and social engagement throughout their lives while also compressing the period of frailty that many experience as they age.

- Address the opportunities and limitations to development and adoption of promising technologies.

- Energize development of a global ageing and technology collaborative to identify potentially high impact packages of products and programs implementable on a global scale.

Three "big ideas" that emerged from the Summit are being addressed by small groups, charged with making specific proposals.  The ideas focused on developing:
Innovation hubs to test new technologies and adaptations of current technologies.  Twenty-first century workforce training and education (including online courses/certificates).  Standards or "seals of approval" for selected technologies to help aging services professionals make wise investments in technology infrastructure and to help older adults and caregivers make informal decisions about appropriate solutions for healthy aging.

Executive Director of the Center for Ageing Services Technologies (CAST), Majd Alwan, reported on the application of technologies to a number of care issues that are highly relevant to older adults and people with disabilities.  While some technologies have been studied with robust, reproducible results, others lack compelling evidence of their benefits.  But, there is growing belief that there are technologies that can improve health outcomes, preserve independence, improve care coordination and reduce costs.

Dr. Joe Coughlin of MIT AgeLab reinforced major themes driving his work at MIT: the confluence of use, adoption, trust and older adults.  AgeLab is applying these themes to new vehicle technologies as well as home technologies supporting health, finance and caregiving.

IAHSA looks forward to continuing to be involved in this cross-national dialogue.