Technology a top priority for 66.7% of senior living providers responding to a recent survey. The LeadingAge Center for Aging Services Technologies and PointClickCare led the joint market assessment survey, initiated in June, to better understand how senior living providers are meeting resident and family expectations.

“Senior care is an industry in transition, faced with new challenges and new opportunities unlike ever before,” says Dave Wessinger, chief technology officer, PointClickCare. “What we are hearing from our customers, and what this latest study confirms, is that providers are feeling the impact of this shift and looking really closely at the role technology plays in helping them build sustainable businesses.”

Other findings:

  • More than 90% of all survey participants across all care settings said that electronic health records technology delivers greater visibility and access to information, yet only 48% of assisted living respondents said they have invested in the technology, compared with continuing care retirement communities and skilled nursing facilities, which have an EHR adoption rate close to 80%.
  • 95.7% of assisted living respondents believe referrals into their communities come from family or friends, and 63.8% said that referrals through friends is the reason residents moved into their communities.

“There is a disconnect for many providers on the significant role that technology can play in addressing the industry’s biggest challenges,” said Majd Alwan, Ph.D., senior vice president of technology for LeadingAge and executive director at LeadingAge CAST. “As the demographic shift in the senior population unfolds, technology becomes necessary to drive efficiencies that leading senior care providers will require.”

An infographic highlighting key survey findings is available online.