Front Porch Center for Innovation and Wellbeing Receives LTC & Senior Living LINK Spirit of Innovation Award

The Southern California-based Front Porch Center for Innovation and Wellbeing (Front Porch Center), a 501(C)(3) founded on the belief that technology innovation plays a vital role in enhancing wellbeing, has earned a Spirit of Innovation Award for the Center’s eHealth initiative that uses broadband-enabled technologies to create an ecosystem of care for an underserved population of diverse and linguistically-isolated seniors through digital health literacy, remote patient monitoring, tele-consultations, and medication monitoring.

The Spirit of Innovation Award, which the Front Porch Center received in the Assistive and Predictive Technology Category, recognizes companies for their innovation, dedication to continuous improvement, development of best practices and commitment to the success of the long term care and senior living industry. The Front Porch Center was honored during a luncheon on July 23 during the LTC & Senior Living LINK Conference in Chicago.

“We are thrilled and humbled to receive the LTC & Senior Living LINK Spirit of Innovation Award,” said Kari Olson, president of the Front Porch Center. “We strive to close the gap by bringing innovative technological solutions to older adults that can assist them in proactively managing their own health and wellbeing.”

The Front Porch Center has been at the forefront of using technology to help older adults live healthier – and active – lifestyles. In May, the Front Porch Center announced successful results from its “Minding Our Meds: Demonstrating Senior Medication Adherence with Cell Phone Texting Reminders” pilot project, which featured customized texting services for medication alerts, diabetes and other chronic disease medication reminders, and medication tracking programs for seniors at Front Porch communities and neighboring senior centers.

Earlier this year, The Front Porch Center piloted a CyberCycle fitness program which included two teams of 10-12 residents from a pair of Southern California Front Porch communities. CyberCycles are specially-designed bikes equipped with virtual-reality screens to simulate outdoor biking and racing.

The LTC & Senior Living LINK Conference brings together real-world, successful initiatives from long term care and senior living providers and covers the timeliest and most topical industry issues – addressing the full scope of providers’ business needs.

During the luncheon, Olson and Davis Park, director of the Front Porch Center, presented a case study of The Front Porch Center’s eHealth initiative. In the presentation, Olson and Park discussed the best methods for use of today’s technology, as well as the need for technology to become more sensitive to multi-cultural needs and environments.

“At a time when people are looking to technology to serve older adults and transform aging in place, it’s important not to lose sight of what is currently available with technology,” Park said. “Using that technology more efficiently and coordinating efforts across organizations can really change and impact lives.”