Online social interaction for reduced social isolation and experienced loneliness among older people - the Fik@ room
| Reference number | |
| Coordinator | Mälardalens högskola - Akademin för hälsa, vård och välfärd |
| Funding from Vinnova | SEK 975 350 |
| Project duration | October 2020 - June 2021 |
| Status | Completed |
| Venture | Innovations to mitigate the crisis |
| Call | Finding new ways in the time of a crisis |
Important results from the project
The purpose was to further develop and study the introduction of Fik@rummet, a research-based digital solution for safe social interaction between older people. Fik@rummet has now been further developed by researchers in co-production with older people, municipalities and an IT company and will be launched to Sweden´s municipalities during autumn of 2021. The participants have positive experiences of using Fik@rummet and the municipalities have contributed to new knowledge about recruitment as well as initiation and support in the introduction and use of Fik@rummet.
Expected long term effects
The older participants increased their social networks and felt that a respectful and friendly tone was maintained in the conversations. However, the participants´ experienced loneliness did not decrease in the project´s two-month pilot study, which was seen in an earlier and longer study of Fik@rummet. Furthermore, Fik@rummet was perceived as easy to use, but support was needed mainly when starting up and using the tablet. There were some problems with recruiting the older participants in the municipalities, mainly due in part to low digital competence among the target group.
Approach and implementation
Through co-production, participating parties have further developed Fik@rummet into a reliable and sustainable digital application ready to be commercialized. All parties have contributed to, and will benefit greatly from, the results that the project has generated both specifically for Fik@rummet but also for the introduction of digital solutions in municipal care in general.