Seniors and Digital Clinical Trials - Opportunities and Challenges
Germany's population is ageing, clinical studies are becoming more digital: What do seniors need to share their medical data with the help of apps or wearables? An overview.
The population in Germany is one of the oldest in the world. With an average age of 45.7 years, it ranks fifth behind Japan, Italy, Martinique and Portugal. At the end of 2019, the Federal Statistical Office counted more than 18 million Germans who were 65 or older.
Due to the low birth rate and increasing life expectancy, Germans will continue to age in the coming years. Experts predict that the number of people over 67 will grow from 16.2 to 21.4 million between 2020 and 2060. By comparison, the group of under-20s will shrink from 15.3 to 14.1 million, as will the age group of 20 to 67-year-olds from 51.8 to 42.7 million.
Digital clinical trials and demographic change
This demographic change also has an impact on digital clinical trials. Potential patients will become older and older over the coming decades, and the risk of serious illness increases with age. A lot of data is already being collected in studies using mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets, and patients often use their own devices for this purpose.
But will this process be able to be continued and expanded as study participants grow older? How involved are they in digital life? And why should they not be excluded from digital studies?
Seniors use the internet more often
In fact, internet use by senior citizens is increasing from year to year. A recent study by Initiative D21 shows that 85 percent of 60-69 year olds surf the internet, 72 percent use it on mobile devices. Among the over 70s, more than half of the respondents are on the net, 36 percent use mobile devices.
In addition to age, education also determines access to the internet, according to D21. People with a high level of education use the internet 98 percent of the time and 90 percent with mobile devices. In contrast, only 70 percent of citizens with a low level of education use the internet and 60 percent surf on mobile devices.
In addition, it can be assumed that the use of the internet by senior citizens will continue to increase in the coming decades. For women and men between the ages of 40 and 60, the seniors of tomorrow, the internet has long been part of everyday life.
An evaluation by the Federal Statistical Office showed that with 12.7 million people, the age group with the most internet users is the 50 to 59 year olds, followed by the 40 to 49 year olds with 10.6 million. According to the Federal Statistical Office, almost 100 percent of 14- to 59-year-olds already use the internet.
Smartphone use makes seniors fit
Studies in recent years also showed that seniors who used smartphones, tablets or computers in their daily lives were mentally fitter than peers who were less engaged with technology. The cognitive abilities of their brains improved because engaging with new functions challenged older people.
Digital clinical trials benefit from this. In order to motivate older patients to participate in the surveys, the use of BYOD devices (bring your own device) should be encouraged. Using their own smartphones or tablets makes it easier for seniors to participate, as they know the device and do not need technical instruction.
This does not exclude careful instruction in the functions of the apps for digital clinical trials. Easy handling of the functions increases the interest of the participants. On the other hand, those who do not understand the programme and find it too complicated to enter their own data will give up more quickly and drop out of the study prematurely.
Digital clinical trials benefit from senior citizens' interests
Digital clinical trials benefit from the interests of senior citizens when involving them. For example, older people today not only live healthier and more sporty lives than fifty years ago, their personal well-being, their physical and mental health plays a decisive role for them. Education about functions, data use and study objectives additionally increases the motivation to participate. If older patients get the chance to learn more about their health and its development, they see a personal sense for their participation besides the scientific one.
The age growth of the population does not have to be an obstacle to the digital implementation of clinical studies. Those who meet seniors in their personal everyday life, integrate their devices and carefully educate them about the use of the apps and the opportunities of the study have the chance to attract motivated and interested patients.
Text: Alcedis-Redaktion