AARP collaborating to test health, fitness products on seniors
AARP is collaborating with several organizations on a research initiative to test whether mobile health applications and devices meet the needs of U.S. residents ages 50 and older.
The national association for people over 50 launched Project Catalyst last year which puts the 50-plus consumer at the center of innvoation. "By conducting consumer research of new and emerging products with the 50-plus consumer, we help inform developers about how their products and services are working to improve the lives of Americans as they age," according to information on the AARP website.
There are about 100 million U.S. residents ages 50 and older, and such individuals are the largest consumers of healthcare. Parks Associates forecasted an aggregate revenue opportunity of $30 billion over the next five years on top of an existing market of roughly $70 billion across nine categories of health and wellness products and services.
This inaugural project will leverage Georgia Institute of Technology's HomeLab which uses a network of more than 550 older-adult research participants to conduct in-home research and testing of products and services. Researchers will test five different devices used for tracking sleep and physical activities and use surveys to assess the devices' usability and effectiveness at changing users' behavior.
The study will examine how the participants used the devices and what issues they faced, rather than comparing the devices.
The results are set to be released in June.
Editor Beth earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and master’s in health communication. She has worked in hospital, academic and publishing settings over the past 20 years. Beth joined TriMed in 2005, as editor of CMIO and Clinical Innovation + Technology. When not covering all things related to health IT, she spends time with her husband and three children.