Reflexive case studies on conducting technology implementation research in long-term care homes

Technological advancements offer the potential to address healthcare challenges, such as improving residents' quality of life in long-term care homes (LTCHs). However, there is often a mismatch between developed technologies and the actual needs of residents and staff, leading to poor adoption. Researchers conducting research on developing and implementing technologies in LTCHs face unique challenges. Understanding these challenges is crucial for enhancing technology adoption and sustainability in LTCHs.

This qualitative reflection study is about the experiences of two technology implementation projects in British Columbia and Ontario, Canada. Researchers from the Telepresence Robot and MouvMat projects participated in four reflection sessions. Using reflexive thematic analysis, we identified themes and gained valuable insight into the experiences, lessons learned, and recommendations.

Both projects faced challenges in recruitment, accommodating individual residents' needs and routines, staff shortages and turnover, and logistics barriers due to infrastructural limitations and changing guidelines. The Telepresence Robot and the MouvMat teams implemented a range of adaptive strategies. These included frequent check-ins with families, creating appropriate training materials, co-developing tailored solutions, flexible recruitment approaches, staff engagement tactics, and personalized support.

The lessons learned highlighted the need for adaptive strategies in conducting research in LTCHs. The study calls for structural support and partnerships between academics and practice locally, nationally, and internationally, as well as efforts to combat ageism in technology use. Researchers need support for knowledge translation and sharing findings to highlight the value of staff participation and showcase research benefits.