Digital technology for supporting Aged Care Services: A Scoping Review

Digital technology has great potential to support human health, including the complex needs of older adults in aged care services and treatments. This scoping review aims to explore the current state and roles of digital technology in supporting aged care following the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. We included 47 studies from the last 10 years covering five databases discussing the development, implementation, evaluation, or review of digital technology in aged care services and the broader clinical system. Seven key roles of digital technology were identified, including health monitoring and assessment, remote healthcare services, assistive technology to support treatment, self-care management, social technology to facilitate interaction, clinical decision support, and aged care quality measurement carried out by twelve technology types. Our findings show the potential of digital technology in enhancing the capability and efficiency of aged care services for developing or improving socio-technical aged care systems. We conclude with six recommendations for future research.