Breakout Sessions

Each breakout session will be repeated in both the morning and afternoon sessions unless otherwise noted.

Breakout #1: "High Tech/High Touch: The Role of Technology in enhancing Care of Elders in Nursing, Assisted Living, and Adult Day Communities,"   Presenters: Jack York, President, It's Never 2 Late, and Jim Kinsey, Senior Consultant, Institute for Caregiver Education.

In this session we will:

  • Describe how technology can improve efficiencies and provide more time developing relationships with our residents.
  • Explain how to integrate technology into the care planning process.
  • Discuss how common technological equipment can be integrated into wellness and recreational programs.
  • Identify common outcomes of cognitive exercise in older adults.

Breakout #2: "Aging in Place: Bringing Care Home with the Help of Technology,"   Presenter: Viki Hoak, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Homecare Association.

In this session we will:

  • Identify technological advances that support an aging in place philosophy.
  • Discuss applications of technologies to enhance at-home independence.
  • Explain potential funding sources for at-home technologies.

Breakout #3: "SOTEL, Service Oriented Technically Enhanced Living: A Community Living Model,"   Presenter: Mach Shoneveld, CEO Sotel Enterprises, Inc.

In this session we will:

  • Identify how technology can support aging in place in independent living communities by assisting daily living.
  • Identify how technology can be applied to monitor the well-being of older adults aging in place in community living situations.
  • Understand how technology in living spaces can support and enhance the functioning of older adults in new social roles.

Breakout #4-A (Morning Only): "Intelligent Technology for Eldercare: University Research Presentations,"   Moderator: John Spletzer, Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering, Lehigh University.

Scheduled Talks:

  • "Towards Autonomous Wheelchair Systems," Chao Gao, Lehigh University
  • "Pacemakers and Implantable Cardiac Defibrillators: Software Radio Attacks and Zero-power Defenses," Benjamin Ransford, University of Massachusetts - Amherst
  • "Smart Attire: Bringing Technology to Your Wardrobe," Raghu K. Ganti, University of Illinois - Urbana Champaign
  • "UMass ASSISTHealth - Evaluating Healthcare Technologies and a new Personal Healthcare Robot Concept," Bryan Thibodeau, University of Massachusetts - Amherst


Breakout #4-B (Afternoon Only): "Bringing Great Ideas to Market: The Story of the Automated Transport & Retrieval System (ATRS),"   Presenter: Tom Panzarella, Chief Technology Officer, Freedom Sciences, LLC.

Using ATRS as a case study, this session will highlight some of the challenges faced in commercializing assistive technologies. The roles of public, private, and academic partners in this process will also be discussed.