Tech-Enhanced Aging: Digital Health Solutions for Independent Aging at Home

In the face of growing socio-economic challenges, such as strained public healthcare systems, shortages of general practitioners, and limited social assistance resources, health monitoring technologies are increasingly promoted as a solution to the care needs of older adults aging at home. These technologies, including self-monitoring devices and telemedicine platforms, enable remote tracking of vital signs—such as blood pressure, cardiac frequency, blood oxygen saturation, and fall detection—promising to improve preventive care, reduce healthcare costs, and alleviate the burden on medical professionals. However, the deployment of these technologies raises important questions about their actual usage by older adults, their families, caregivers, and healthcare professionals.

This paper explores the intersection of aging, technology, and care, examining both the potential and limitations of tech-enhanced aging for older individuals, particularly in underserved and remote areas. How do older adults engage with these technologies? To what extent do they maintain agency over their own health through self-monitoring devices? And how do healthcare professionals incorporate these technologies into their practice?

Drawing on concepts from digital health, this presentation will critically assess whether health-monitoring technologies truly empower older adults to maintain independence or whether they reinforce existing socio-economic disparities. Special attention will be given to frail older individuals living in disadvantaged contexts, exploring how the availability (or lack) of technological infrastructure shapes their experience of aging. This inquiry seeks to contribute to broader sociological debates on the role of technology in aging, healthcare, and social justice in the Anthropocene.