# Sense4Safety: Supporting socially vulnerable older adults

> **NIH NIH R03** · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · 2021 · $81,230

## Abstract

Abstract
Falls and fall-related injuries are significant public health issues for adults 65 years of age and
older. Over a third of older adults (OA) fall each year and 10-20% of falls result in serious
injuries such as fractures and head trauma. The annual direct medical costs in the US as a
result of falls are estimated to exceed $50 billion, and this estimate does not include the indirect
costs of disability, dependence, and decreased quality of life. This project targets community
dwelling OA with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) who are socially vulnerable. MCI is a leading
risk factor for falls in OA. Approximately 15%-20% of OA have MCI, and over 60% of OA with
MCI fall annually – two to three times the rate of those without cognitive impairment. Socially
vulnerable OA living in low-resource neighborhoods with poor housing conditions have twice the
risk of falling. We have developed an innovative technology-supported nursing-driven
intervention called Sense4Safety to 1) identify escalating risk for falls real-time through in-home
passive sensor monitoring (including depth and motion sensors); 2) employ machine learning to
inform individualized alerts for fall risk; and 3) link `at risk' socially vulnerable older adults with a
nurse tele-coach who will guide them in implementing evidence-based individualized plans to
reduce fall-risk. The purpose of this study is to refine the Sense4Safety intervention based on
extensive feedback by low income OA with MCI, their family members or trusted others and
clinicians in order to ensure that the passive monitoring system to predict fall risk for OA with
MCI can generate actionable and tailored information that can be used effectively by these
stakeholder groups.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10264032
- **Project number:** 5R03AG069793-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
- **Principal Investigator:** George Demiris
- **Activity code:** R03 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $81,230
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-09-30 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10264032

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10264032, Sense4Safety: Supporting socially vulnerable older adults (5R03AG069793-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10264032. Licensed CC0.

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