Is Smart Living For You?

The concept of smart homes began in 1984. But over the last decade, interest in them as alternatives to institutional care has gone from a novelty to a viable service line (see Healthcare In The Smart Home: A Study Of Past, Present And Future). The concept is simple—smart homes are homes that are “enhanced” with computer systems that monitor and control things like doors, windows, climate, security, lighting, and appliances. There are roughly 41.3 million smart homes in the United States (not all in health care), and their benefit—they allow consumers with disabilities to remain in the . . .