20 July 2003
Source: Hardcopy the New York Times, July 20, 2003.
Responsible Party
Eric Dishman
[Photos of Eric Dishman and shoe sole with chip attached.]
Eric Dishman sees a health care crisis looming. As the baby-boom generation ages, the number of people suffering from Alzheimer's disease is expected to increase sharply; some researchers predict 14 million cases by 2050, versus 4 million today. EAch case means a person in need of diligent care and attention.
That is why Mr. Dishman has spent the last year and a half developing new technology like home monitoring networks to help the elderly.
Since 1999, he has worked as an ethnographer for Intel, which means that he pays long visits to people in their homes, constantly looking for new applications of technology. It is an ideal job for Mr. Dishman, who has a master's desgree in social science but also describes himself as a technology geek.
One one assignment, he noted that many families he was visiting had been struggling to care for elderly relatives. "They would say: 'You've got all these kinds of technologies. Why don't you desin something that can help me with my aging parents.' " he recalled.
In September 2001, he approached Intel with the idea of developing technology expressly for the improvement of home health care. Intel responded by establishing a team of researchers, social scientists and engineers, managed by Mr. Dishman.
One focus of the team, he said, is the creation of a home monitoring network to allow people with Alzheimer's and other cognitive disorders to remain in their homes instead of moving to assisted-living centers.
In such a network, radio-frequency tags placed in shoes and in clothing interact with sensors in rugs, carpets, chairs and even teacups to track someone's activities. If the person is preparing a cup of tea, for example, sensors in the cabinets and in the objects she is using would detect any deviation from her normal routine and send signals to a nearby computer. The information would be sent to a television set, which would play a video clip offering assistance.
Or, if the person fell, the sensors would alert others of the location by cellphone.
The devices are not yet on the market, but Mr. Dishman said prototypes would be ready for trial runs by early next year.
Mr. Dishman, 35, says society will have to face a shortage of home health care one way or another. "Mos tpeople in the technology industry don't pay attention to the elderly population," he said. "You can't ignore this."
Campbell Robertson