Supporting Home- and Community-Based Organization Activities through a Customized Videoconferencing Platform

Abstract

Purpose: Social isolation and loneliness are major challenges experienced by older adults worldwide, with negative implications on health and quality of life. The lack of accessible resources and services in many communities to address these challenges further exacerbate the negative consequences. Home- and Community-Based Organizations (HCBOs) have the goal of providing such services and, during the pandemic, have increasingly moved to video conferencing platforms to serve their clients and communicate with their staff members. However, existing video conferencing platforms are not designed for effective delivery and implementation of social engagement programs. Designers need to consider organizational capacity, platform functionality, activity types, and target audiences. The goals of our research project includes: understanding the needs and preferences of HCBOS to develop a dashboard that is adaptable to deliver community programs to older adults without increasing staff burden. Method: We implemented a mixed methods approach, which included qualitative (e.g., interviews) and quantitative elements (e.g., technology use questionnaires, demographics). We interviewed four subject matter experts (SMEs) who were staff members at organizations serving older adults in the community and residential care. We explored their current use and application of existing video conferencing platforms in their HCBO.  We then presented a demonstration of OneClick.chat, a novel video conferencing platform optimized to deliver social engagement interventions for older adults.  OneClick is browser enabled (e.g., Google Chrome, Safari) and requires minimal internet speeds to function to support accessibility of a diverse user population.  We asked the SMEs how OneClick might serve their needs and preferences of their organization, potential barriers to implementation, and their preferences for customization. Results and Discussion: The SMEs reported a diverse set of experiences pertaining to accessibility, acceptance, and adoption of video conferencing technology. They described existing video conferencing platforms as difficult to use and requiring extensive technical support for staff and clients. After watching the OneClick demonstration, they described OneClick as flexible (e.g., ability to host a diverse set of events), user friendly (e.g., large fonts, labeled buttons), supportive of social interactions (e.g., diverse engaging event content), and supportive of users’ privacy (e.g., HIPPA Compliant). They identified potential benefits of using the platform for staff applications such as trainings and administrative tasks (e.g., review and edit documents). Most challenges noted by participants were related to the introduction of a new platform: motivating people to adopt something new and potential staff burden to replace the platform they are currently using. Our research provides key insights pertaining to the potential benefits and concerns of implementing of a video conferencing platform to HCBOs. Our findings informed the design features needed to support delivery of social engagement programs by HCBOs. Furthermore, these insights informed development of a dashboard aimed to help organize and assist with the delivery of social engagement interventions.