The InnoRenew CoE sent a letter to the Government of the Republic of Slovenia to draw attention to the significant shortcomings and problems faced by homes for the older adults. InnoRenew CoE is a partner in the international project “Pilots for Healthy and Active Aging” (Pharaon), funded by the European Commission (GA #857188), which aims to create a truly smart and active life for Europe’s ageing population.

In the Pharaon project, InnoRenew CoE researchers worked closely with six homes for older adults in Slovenian Istria, central Slovenia and Štajerska region. During the project activities, they realised that in Slovenia, homes for the older adults are not adequately equipped in terms of infrastructure to be able to easily install technologies that would ensure the improvement of the health and well-being of residents of homes for the older adults.

In the homes for the older adults they are facing challenges, namely the lack of space, inadequate layout and arrangement of the interior, as well as inadequate and lack of hardware and other building infrastructure. As a result, they face too high relative humidity in summer, while it is too low in winter. Further, the internet connection in homes for the older adults is mostly limited to common areas, and the staff still have the opportunity to upgrade their digital literacy.

This is why the InnoRenew CoE decided to propose to the Government of the Republic of Slovenia to take the following measures for the support for investments and increasing the digital competence of staff in homes for the older adults:

1. When planning and renovating buildings, consider the needs of users and strive to create an interior environment that promotes health and well-being, or use the principles of restorative environmental and ergonomic design (REED), which is based on the needs of the environment and user. This can be achieved by using wood in the interior, by reducing noise, with natural light, with open spaces for interaction and physical activity, with the ergonomics of equipment and rooms, and with adequate air quality, relative humidity and temperature in them.
2. Homes should be equipped with modern ICT devices and tools that can monitor environmental parameters such as indoor air quality (concentrations of pollutants and particulate matter in the air) and other gases (oxygen, carbon dioxide and monoxide), heat transfer, air flow, ventilation, thermal comfort (heating, cooling), humidity, energy efficiency, and acoustic, lighting and visual comfort. It is essential that this information is displayed in a user-friendly manner.
3. The use of smart technologies that facilitate the work of staff, such as e.g. robotics for the distribution of food and medicine and sensors for detecting falls.

About Pharaon project

The overall goal of the Pharaon project is to create a smart and active life for Europe’s aging population. The project is based on integrated and highly flexible and interoperable open platforms, advanced services, devices and tools, including the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, robotics, cloud computing, smart portable electronic devices, big data and smart analytics.