Study Calls for More Inclusive Design in Digital Health Tools for Older Adults

By Tosin Clegg

Amid the rapid expansion of digital healthcare services worldwide, emerging research is drawing attention to a critical but often overlooked challenge: the usability of health technologies for older adults.

In a paper made available to journalists, Christine Ine, a Boston-based program coordinator and product professional whose work explores ageing, digital health, and inclusive technology design, argues that the slow adoption of many digital health tools among elderly users may be less about technological resistance and more about design.

According to Ine, while telemedicine platforms, wearable devices, and mobile health applications have been widely promoted as tools to enhance independence and wellbeing among older adults, many of these technologies are developed without sufficient consideration for the realities of ageing.

“The primary obstacle is not that older adults are unwilling or unable to learn,” she explained. “Often, the challenge is that the tools presented to them contain complex terminology, confusing navigation paths, or cluttered interfaces that make engagement difficult. When people feel uncertain or overwhelmed, they tend to withdraw.”

With the global population aged 60 and above projected to rise significantly in the coming decades, Ine believes the issue deserves greater attention from technology developers and health policymakers.
She suggests that what is often described as a “digital divide” may, in many cases, be better understood as a usability gap: a mismatch between the design of digital health tools and the needs of older users.
Drawing from her research, Ine notes that barriers to adoption can be understood through multiple dimensions, including perception, cognition, motivation, and physical ability. Age-related factors such as declining vision, memory changes, and reduced fine motor control can make navigating poorly designed interfaces particularly challenging.
“When digital systems do not account for the physical and cognitive changes that can accompany ageing, they may unintentionally exclude the very population they are meant to support,” she said. “Accessibility must go beyond technical compliance and consider real-world usability.”

Ine pointed to findings from the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) indicating that many adults over 50 already use technology to support their daily lives, with a majority reporting that digital tools improve their quality of life. However, she notes that engagement can be limited when user experiences feel frustrating or unintuitive.

Her research encourages a shift in how digital health solutions are developed, advocating for co-design approaches that involve older adults and caregivers directly in the design process.
“Older adults are not passive recipients of technology,” she said. “When they are involved in shaping solutions, the results tend to be more intuitive, empowering, and sustainable.”

Among the practical design considerations she highlights are high-contrast visual elements, simplified layouts, icon-based navigation, and audio prompts. Such features can reduce cognitive strain and improve accessibility for individuals experiencing memory or vision challenges.
Reflecting on her professional experience at SLR Memory-Care Assisted Living, Ine noted that structured coordination, consistent documentation, and proactive outreach contributed to a 30 percent increase in program retention among more than fifty participants. She added that successful digital health ecosystems should also incorporate caregivers through shared dashboards and remote monitoring tools that support collaborative care.
While international standards such as the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines provide valuable technical guidance, Ine believes they represent only part of the solution. “A system can meet accessibility standards and still be difficult to use,” she observed. “True accessibility requires empathy, designing systems that respect dignity, confidence, and emotional comfort.”
As healthcare systems increasingly rely on digital technologies, Ine argues that prioritizing inclusive design will be essential to ensuring that innovation strengthens, rather than widens, existing health disparities. “If digital health is to support independence and dignity in later life,” she concluded, “its design must reflect the lived realities of the people it aims to serve.”