A Protocol-Driven, Bedside Digital Conversational Agent to Support Nurse Teams and Mitigate Risks of Hospitalization in Older Adults: Case Control Pre-Post Study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Hospitalized older adults often experience isolation and disorientation while receiving care, placing them at risk for many inpatient complications, including loneliness, depression, delirium, and falls. Embodied conversational agents (ECAs) are technological entities that can interact with people through spoken conversation. Some ECAs are also relational agents, which build and maintain socioemotional relationships with people across multiple interactions. This study utilized a novel form of relational ECA, provided by Care Coach (care.coach, inc): an animated animal avatar on a tablet device, monitored and controlled by live health advocates. The ECA implemented algorithm-based clinical protocols for hospitalized older adults, such as reorienting patients to mitigate d

SUBMITTER: Bott N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6913375 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature