Oregon Roybal Center for Translational Research on Aging

Oregon Health & Science University, Portland OR

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The Oregon Roybal Center for Aging and Technology (ORCATECH) is dedicated to: 1) Supporting a unique infrastructure that facilitates the process of developing and translating basic social, behavioral and biological knowledge about aging independently using state of the art technology and engineering;2) Advancing the use-inspired ORCATECH Living Laboratory model for technology-based health monitoring and support of independent aging, utilizing individual residences and communities with advances in ubiquitous computing and including new constituencies focusing on underserved populations;3) Accelerating the process of development, translation and dissemination of knowledge gained in the living laboratory through innovative public-private partnerships, cross-disciplinary collaborations and recruitment of new talent into the field. The Center will foster and stimulate translational innovation though a number of mechanisms including its multidisciplinary, multi-institutional Council composed of academic, community and industry leaders, building new national and international research collaborations, establishing a network of retired industry based engineers and health providers for participatory design development (pilot 6-2, ETHICS project) and an internship program for academic trainees to be resident in industry research groups. The Center advances a Living Laboratory model consisting of a network of residences including rural residents, residents living in Section 8, low-income housing (pilot 7-2), and a unique senior community prospectively designed for unobtrusive monitoring of activity with leading-edge technology (pilot 6-1;7-1). A pilot grant program provides a further mechanism for generating needed new knowledge, recruiting new investigators into the field and enabling future, more definitive studies to be conducted. Initial pilots will address a breadth of key topics including identifying a retired engineer's cohort to assess health-related technology use attitudes from the unique perspective of technically sophisticated seniors, using in-home technologies to detect dynamic changes in social interactions and engagement during changes of senior's residences and understanding and enabling an underserved population's use of home-based technology for independent living.