My university announced a new AGE-WELL National Innovation Hub unveiled this week at SFU's Surrey campus will address ageing challenges through digital technologies aimed at improving seniors' quality of life. The hub will benefit from $3.5 million announced by Western Economic Diversification Canada during its launch.
The AGE-WELL National Innovation Hub: Digital Health Circle will bring communities and experts together to tackle age-related challenges, support partnerships to create real-world solutions, develop talent to meet the needs of B.C.’s tech businesses and help older adults in B.C. and across Canada live well.
“Our aim is to leverage the extensive resources already established in B.C. to spur the development of technologies and services in the digital health sector,” says Andrew Sixsmith, scientific co-director of AGE-WELL and an SFU gerontology professor. “The new ideas that are generated and products created will benefit older people and caregivers right across Canada.”
The hub will also help B.C. companies, community and academic partners design solutions that fit the needs of their users and stakeholders.
Leading the Digital Health Circle’s team of experts is Sylvain Moreno, an associate professor of professional practice at SFU’s School of Interactive Arts and Technology (SIAT), who specializes in neuro-technologies related to interactive digital media and brain health solutions.
“The Digital Health Circle’s focus on translating knowledge into new technologies is essential for British Columbia to strengthen our research and innovation while growing the health technology sector in B.C.," says Moreno. "The hub will coalesce these objectives to deliver real impact and improvement to the ageing population in B.C."
The AGE-WELL National Innovation Hub: Digital Health Circle will bring communities and experts together to tackle age-related challenges, support partnerships to create real-world solutions, develop talent to meet the needs of B.C.’s tech businesses and help older adults in B.C. and across Canada live well.
“Our aim is to leverage the extensive resources already established in B.C. to spur the development of technologies and services in the digital health sector,” says Andrew Sixsmith, scientific co-director of AGE-WELL and an SFU gerontology professor. “The new ideas that are generated and products created will benefit older people and caregivers right across Canada.”
The hub will also help B.C. companies, community and academic partners design solutions that fit the needs of their users and stakeholders.
Leading the Digital Health Circle’s team of experts is Sylvain Moreno, an associate professor of professional practice at SFU’s School of Interactive Arts and Technology (SIAT), who specializes in neuro-technologies related to interactive digital media and brain health solutions.
“The Digital Health Circle’s focus on translating knowledge into new technologies is essential for British Columbia to strengthen our research and innovation while growing the health technology sector in B.C.," says Moreno. "The hub will coalesce these objectives to deliver real impact and improvement to the ageing population in B.C."
Sounds great, but this appears to me to be another initiative that does not have any seniors working with them. I could be wrong but when I tried to find out information on the net I was led to press release documents that did not have any useful information about the team that SFU has working on this project. The information about them showed that they had great academic qualifications but they were all looked below the age of 50.
Any program that purports to deliver real impact and improvement to help "the ageing population" that does not have seniors represented on its staff or on its planning board, is wasting its time. I am sure the young people (under the age of 60) at SFU think that they are/will be doing great things but they are, in my humble opinion wasting their time unless they start to listen to seniors and those seniors have some voice in the setting of objectives.
There are too many programs and agencies out there that have a very paternalistic view of seniors, this attitude is, to me evident, in this latest announcement from SFU. The University will make money and the scholars will deliver great papers that will not be read or used by seniors because there appears to be no path to reach seniors.
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