Amazon’s ‘Care Hub’ in Alexa to Remotely Check in on Aging Parents and Loved Ones
When it comes to technology, how it can to make a difference in our life is one of its greatest aspects. The tech giant Amazon has introduced a new feature called ‘Care Hub’ in Alexa voice assistant based devices to help people care for aging family members.
Amazon embedded this feature when customers requested to allow Alexa to monitor and get connected with aging members of close and extended family. It took a while to understand the needs and integrations within the voice assistant, but Amazon finally took another step toward the aging-in-place space.
So how does it work?
Two Alexa accounts are required for the customer or a caregiver and an aging loved one to link and get connected with each other. That’s it. Now, the caregiver will be receiving alerts and view the basic information and activity feed of the family member at home. Moreover, in case of an emergency, the member just has to speak “Alexa, call for help”, and an instant notification alert is sent to the caregiver or to a person whose contact is saved for times like this.
Toni Reid, vice president of Alexa Experiences and Echo Devices, was quoted on CNBC saying — “Once that connection is established, the care recipient doesn’t need to do anything and can go about their day as normal, what the caregiver gets is some peace of mind.”
Reid added, we have been working to get into the aging space for years, and for the last 18 months, the company was working on it. Since the Covid-19 outbreak, a lot of people were staying at home and unable to meet with their family members. This made us put in more efforts and importance to bring ‘Care Hub’ as soon as possible. Employees at Amazon were the first to try the beta version with their family members before we launched for the general population.
He said, it’s just the start for Amazon getting into the aging space, and we believe the company can do a lot more to help seniors age in place.
About Care Hub
The ‘Care Hub’ is a free-to-use feature integrated into the Alexa app. Once connected through an Echo device at home with the Alexa app on your phone, it allows new ways to monitor parents and loved ones remotely. For many, it is the simplest way to stay connected and close with loved ones when physically apart.
The ‘Care Hub’ will keep you updated with all activities throughout the day over the activity feed. You will be able to know whatever your parents at home did according to the category. If they played songs (entertainment category) or asked something from Alexa. When there is no activity, you will be notified as per the alerts set by you in the Care Hub app.
When used with the Care Hub, Alexa can perform several activities. Some of the things that people often ask and say to Alexa are:
· Alexa, call for help — To make an immediate call to you or emergency services.
· Alexa, play the news — Read out the most current news from your preferred News Channel.
· Alexa, please call David — It will connect with David over a hands-free phone call.
· Alexa, remind me to take my medications — Reminders to not miss taking pills on time.
· Alexa, play Rihanna’s songs — Just ask to play your favorite song, artist, or genre.
· Alexa, turn on the lights — Switch on or brighten up the room with Alexa controlled lights.
· Alexa, add milk to my shopping list — Never forget any grocery item when you go shopping.
Complete Privacy Ensured
When you have an Alexa device or app on the phone listening to your requests and conversations, you definitely want to keep them private. Just like the Alexa app and Echo devices, the ‘Care Hub’ is embedded with several layers of security to keep all your data protected at all times.
The Care Hub will show the basic information only if it is allowed by your family member. All you see in the activity feed is general information about how they interacted with Alexa and Echo devices. They have the control to view, listen, and delete any voice-based interaction they had right from the privacy setting.
What’s the Impact?
Amazon said, it is still learning from the way customers are using the Care Hub and the feedback coming from them, requesting some new features and functionality to it. As of now, ‘Care Hub’ is gaining momentum and finding a permanent place on smart devices. It is witnessing new users joining every day. Considering both the current pandemic and the aging population, we can expect that this new tool will be simple and intuitive for the caregivers as well as their loved ones.
Sources:
https://www.amazon.com/Alexa-Care-Hub/b?ie=UTF8&node=21390531011
https://homehealthcarenews.com/2020/11/amazon-unveils-care-hub-a-new-alexa-tool-designed-for-aging-in-place
