New report on the uptake of assistive health technologies in Australia

Australia needs to actively drive the uptake of assistive healthcare technologies to allow people to stay at home longer and live more independently, according to a new Australian Council of Learned Academies (ACOLA) report.

‘Assistive Health Technologies for Independent Living’ finds that accelerating the uptake of assistive health technologies requires the establishment a national multidisciplinary network to connect research with service delivery and grow innovation.

Chronic illness and aged care accounted for 70% of Australia’s $140 billion expenditure on healthcare in 2011-12. The report found that smart technologies enable people to live at home longer, better identify symptoms, control medication and live more safely, thereby having a positive impact on the healthcare system.

The report reveals a series of findings on the barriers and success factors to growing the uptake of assistive technologies and outlines a way forward for the establishment of a national assistive technologies network. It was launched this week in Melbourne by Simon McKeon AO, CSIRO board chairman and chair, Strategic Review of Health and Medical Research.

Key findings are below and the full report can be found here:

• A market focus is critical. An independent body is needed to create an environment in which new and old players can seek to change policies in order to service isolated customers, improve efficiencies and reduce risks and costs. At present, many groups are trying to do the same thing and the lack of a real market is inhibiting progress.
• Expert ‘champions’ are required. The participation of enthusiastic and knowledgeable promoters who want to assist in improving the current status of healthcare delivery is critical. Well-respected champions who have skills in planning for sustainability and who can promote this agenda and bring together clinicians and organisations are required.
• A long-term business model is crucial. Achieving success calls for a business model that has a focus on the value the technology and innovations can bring and their ability to improve productivity, combining innovations that are cost effective with improved health incomes in the long term.
• New interdisciplinary players will be involved. The healthcare market is changing and external players are seeing the opportunity to break into the industry. The new players are interdisciplinary and contribute by leveraging diversification, expanding expertise range and augmenting scale by providing necessary capital.

ACOLA is the forum whereby Australia’s four independent learned academies - Australian Academy of the Humanities, Australian Academy of Science, Academy of Social Sciences in Australia and Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering - come together to contribute to inform national policy development and to develop innovative solutions to complex global problems and emerging national needs. More than 2000 of the nation’s most eminent scientists, researchers, scholars and practitioners contribute to this rich source of expert knowledge.