The discussion showed that digital solutions in long-term care make sense when they are safe, quick to operate, and based on the real needs of facilities and clients. The biggest obstacle is not technology, but the absence of a unified process between the hospital and follow-up care, funding, and coordination across ministries. Nevertheless, there are proven models here too, and they just need to be sensibly connected and supported.
Technologies must be simple, safe, and connected
Practical experience from long-term care facilities shows that the key factors are safety, time savings, and staff acceptability. Solutions must be based on the real needs of the specific facility and its clients, not devised “from behind a desk.” The crucial element is linking professions so that the caregiver, nurse, or rehabilitation worker share up-to-date information and can hand over reports in time via simple alerts. Centralized and quickly accessible data are essential during consultations with a physician as well, to avoid errors and duplication in treatment.
The shift to digital nursing documentation has delivered measurable results, for example cutting the medication administration process by roughly half. The time saved goes back to the patient’s bedside and reduces nurses’ administrative burden. Technology is also a motivational tool in recruiting and onboarding new nurses, who gain support in the form of alerts and suggested procedures. Artificial intelligence here plays the role of an assistant for nursing recommendations, not for medical decisions.
The biggest gap: the patient’s path from hospital to assistance
After acute treatment in hospital, there is no unified and clear procedure for how a patient accesses subsequent health or social care. The link between hospitals and the field is missing, both digitally and on paper, and families are often left at a loss. Instead of developing a new central system over many years, existing tools can be used if they are supported and funded nationwide. Such a “bridge” would ease the burden on hospital beds and direct the patient home, to a nursing service, or to a residential facility.
What is needed is a legally enshrined, uniform process everywhere with clear rules for both healthcare and the social sector, and with real funding. We need to align the fast needs of healthcare with the slower administration of social services and set responsibilities (who receives reports and who intervenes). Local governments currently operate with limited resources for seniors 65+ (only about 5%), and home care services are tied to uncertain EU funds. Without reliable internet coverage, “white spots” will also emerge where technologies cannot be deployed.
Barriers and what already works: funding, pilots, and the “emergency button”
The biggest brake on deploying technologies is money, not staff reluctance or a lack of solutions. Mistrust can be overcome through pilots and testing; practice shows that once verified, technologies are adopted, but it often ends with basic versions without the full gains in efficiency. Proven models from abroad exist and their costs are comparable to the benefits, but without stable funding and coordination they remain under-resourced. It is important to assemble solutions according to the needs of the facility, not to push a one-size-fits-all product.
There is strong logic in keeping a senior at home using a simple “emergency button” and sensors that can call for help automatically. Call centers also operate in Slovakia (for example, Asociácia samaritánov SR) that, in justified cases, can escalate an intervention all the way to the emergency medical service, but these are mainly private initiatives. There is a lack of systemic support from the state and insurers, even though the technologies and know-how are available. Better coordination, telemedicine, and expanded coverage would reduce the number of “white spots” and ease the burden on both the healthcare and social systems.
