The context

The European Union expects an increase of older people to around 149.2 million in 2050, representing 28.5 % of the total population. This remarkable goal of increasing life expectancy must be accompanied by European policies and initiatives to assure the life quality of these citizens.

Recently, the WHO has described the plan for a Decade of Healthy Ageing 2020-2030 where caregivers, including young people and family members, play an important role as educators to foster healthy ageing for current and future generations and promote intergenerational solidarity. For this reason, an innovative approach based on digital transformation is needed to empower formal and informal caregivers to support older people to understand and put into practice Healthy Ageing directives.

Although several European and national strategies have been made available, most caregivers’ training programs still lack the digital readiness and capacity to integrate relevant digital content on healthy ageing and tools in their daily activities.

Aim

The project aims to improve the competences of caregivers that support older adults towards Healthy Ageing strategies, based on a digital transformation of its training and daily work. High-quality content and tools will be developed according to well-known European policies and recommendations (ICOPE WHO), but considering national and local contexts that could increase the impact of our results.

EducAGE project will conduct the effort to implement a set of ICT materials and tools that can be easely used to improve the competences of caregivers on Healthy Ageing.

Consortium

The EducAGE consortium (IPG, CCMIJU, MORE, CUNI, UHK and SE-DSRT) counts with a distinguished experience in research projects, services and networks related to the key areas of the project, such as healthy ageing, ICT solutions for training, and practical implementation of programmes for older adults. Each of the six institutions has an intrinsic feature that positively reinforces the attachment to the older population and the health application of ICT solutions, which will lead to the successful achievement of the objectives of the project.

Polytechnic Institute of Guarda

The Polytechnic Institute of Guarda (IPG) is an institution of higher education oriented to student formation, research activities, services to the community, and cultural, scientific, and technical exchange. It is forming students in various fields, ranging from technology to tourism, education, sports, and health areas, such as nursing and gerontology technicians. IPG has also assumed a central role in national ageing research and will be the headquarters (in the Central Region) of the National Observatory on Aging, aimed at studying the accentuated process of population ageing in Portugal. It is also part of the AgeINfuture, a Reference Center for Active and Healthy Aging and aims to identify, implement and monitor health practices to promote innovative solutions and economic development associated with ageing. IPG has developed several projects to improve the older adults’ quality of life, and promote Health ageing.

CCMIJU - Centro de Cirugía de Mínima Invasión Jesús Usón

The Fundación Centro de Cirugía de Mínima Invasión Jesús Usón (CCMIJU) is a multidisciplinary institution devoted to excellence in research and training in minimally invasive surgical techniques: Bioengineering and Health Technologies, Laparoscopy, Endoscopy, Microsurgery, Endoluminal Therapy and Diagnosis, Anesthesiology, Pharmacology, Stem Cell Therapy and Assisted Reproduction. The CCMIJU has experience in two relevant areas of this project. First, the CCMIJU has vast experience in training health professionals and surgeons, developing new training material and innovative learning tools such as mobile apps. Second, CCMIJU has worked on two projects to promote active ageing through the design of new tools and systems to allow the physical and cognitive training of the older people.

MORE - Collaborative Laboratory Mountains of Research

Collaborative Laboratory Mountains of Research, Association is a Private Non-Profit Association, whose members include research units, associated laboratories, and higher education institutions, technological centers and SMEs. It aims to implement research and innovation agendas in mountain areas oriented towards the creation of economic and social value.

CUNI - Charles University

Charles University is the oldest and biggest university in Czechia; it has approx. Forty-nine thousand students, 17 faculties, and 164 study programs. The Faculty of Medicine in Hradec Kralóvé has long-time experience in teaching students and lecturing doctors. The Faculty hospital (interconnected with the Faculty) is one of the biggest hospitals in Czechia. It provides high-quality health care to about half a million incoming patients and 42000 hospitalised ones. The Faculty, together with the Faculty hospital, has one of the largest concentrations of research in biomedicine in Czechia. Research focuses on diseases of affluence (focus is given to the cardiovascular and gastrointestinal system, diabetes mellitus, etc.), all aspects of population ageing, including studies of regeneration and nutrition, oncology and hemato-oncology, personalised medicine and new diagnostic procedures.

UHK - University of Hradec Králové

The University of Hradec Králové (UHK) was founded in 1959 and bears its current name since 2000. Currently, the Alma Mater of almost 6500 students, the UHKprovides high-quality tertiary education within a large scope of study fields that comprise Social Sciences, Humanities, Educational Studies, Natural Sciences, and Information Technology Studies. The mission of the UHK concerns three essential tasks: to provide the opportunities for the development of the abilities of all interested applicants; to enable this development through the provision of high-quality educational programmes, and to contribute to the competitiveness of the region as well as to the quality of its citizen lives. The UHK has currently 519 academic employees altogether, while 215 are women (academicians and research workers).

SE-DSRT - Semmelweis University

Semmelweis University (SE- DSRT) is the leading higher education institution in the field of medicine and health sciences in Hungary and the Central European region. Its main activities – teaching, research, healing, and innovation – make the more than 250-year-old university an internationally recognised centre of excellence. As a specialist university, it holds a unique place within the country. Its educational prominent role is demonstrated with six faculties and three languages (Hungarian, English, and German), about a third of the more than 12,000 students are foreigners, who come from 97 countries on five continents to study here. The University is also the largest healthcare institution in the country. The university clinics are places of practical education, but they also operate at the highest level of progressiveness. The Semmelweis also has a strong focus on research, development, and innovation, with research focusing on health maintenance, disease prevention, early diagnosis and effective treatment of established diseases, and healthy and active ageing. Around 300 university research groups are active, supported by 46 international and 263 national grants.