Deployment of technologies in North American long-term care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review
Hui Jun Chew, Shannon Freeman, Piper Jackson, Dawn Hemingway, Tammy Klassen-Ross, Melinda Martin-Khan, Davina Banner-Lukaris
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AbstractBackground: During the COVID-19 pandemic, new processes and policies were implemented to limit the spread of COVID-19 in long-term care homes (LTCH). Technology use within LTCH changed significantly.
Research Aim: The purpose of this literature review was to examine the breath of evidence in the use of technology in LTCHs in North America during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Guided by Arksey and O’Malley’s scoping review framework, five databases were searched to identify peer-reviewed articles using key words and subject headings related to Long Term Care, COVID-19, and Technology.
Results: Research articles that described the investigation of, or the analysis of reported data on, the use of any kind of technology in LTCHs in North America during the COVID-19 pandemic were included for analysis. There were 121 articles retrieved, of which 32 articles met the inclusion and exclusion criteria and were included for analysis. Technology was deployed in support of the quality of life of LTCH residents in the context of social isolation, telehealth, virtual services, multidisciplinary collaborations, continuing education and training, infection prevention and control services, and activities, computer-based modelling for the LTCH setting. Technologies described included robots, web-based websites and games, and computer-based models that predict COVID-19 transmission in LTCHs, though most described the use of information and communication technologies to connect people within the LTCH to those outside the LTCH. Researchers also noted technology challenges in LTCH such as poor technological infrastructure, unstable Wi-Fi connectivity and inadequate number of devices to support virtual visits, other online recreation activities in LTCH, as well as the provision of telehealth services.
Conclusion: Findings emphasize the need to examine the impacts of technology use in LTCH in rural and remote areas, to inform actionable insights to the promote accessible, inclusive, and sustainable adoption of new technologies across all LTCH settings.Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic
Hui Jun Chew, Shannon Freeman, Piper Jackson, Dawn Hemingway, Tammy Klassen-Ross, Melinda Martin-Khan, Davina Banner-Lukaris (2025). Deployment of technologies in North American long-term care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review. Gerontechnology, 24(1), 1-13
https://doi.org/10.4017/gt.2025.24.1.1102.06