» The Department of Health and Human Services is extending the compliance timelines for the Office of the National Coordinator’s information blocking and interoperability rule finalized in March, due to the pandemic. The rule delays some of the new compliance deadlines, including for information blocking provisions, until April 2021. Other deadlines, including for application programming interfaces functionality, have been extended to Dec. 31, 2022.

» Digital health company LiveFreely has developed an app that works with Fitbit smartwatches to help seniors and their caregivers stay connected. BUDDY provides a personal caregiving platform that directly connects seniors with their families, caregivers and emergency response personnel. Once downloaded, BUDDY monitors seniors for potentially dangerous situations and alerts caregivers and emergency services as required. The app’s five basic functions are detecting falls, alerting caregivers, sending critical health data directly to 911 if a senior is unconscious or unable to call for help, providing location safety alerts designed for those who might wander due to dementia, and sending medication reminders.

» With many long-term care salad bars closed amid the COVID-19 pandemic, some facilities are investing in “food robots,” such as “Sally.” The robot custom prepares salads for LTC employees and residents at all hours of the day. People can select salads made with up to 22 ingredients or choose from preprogrammed salads and grain bowls on hand. These new technologies help facilitate senior dining services, freeing up their human co-workers to have more one-on-one time with residents, tech experts say.

» VivaTrace and Vantage Technology have partnered to enable automated digital contact tracing within long-term care communities. Residents are armed with featherlight and easy-to-sanitize bracelets that can quickly retrace the path of an infected individual, and understand whom they have come in contact with and the duration for which they have been exposed. The device also allows facilities to quickly sanitize and disinfect all of the areas the person has visited.