The argument "We need to be cautious with digitalization because the hospital population mainly consists of older adults" is a fallacy.

Source: generated by Midjourney

Since we began offering mobile wayfinding solutions in healthcare environments, we have frequently heard the argument:
“Yes, but hospitals are full of elderly people. They can’t handle all this new technology, complex user interfaces, and most of them don’t even have a phone.”

At first glance, this argument may seem logical. Older adults do place disproportionate demands on healthcare services. But does that justify such a claim? If you dig just a little deeper, you’ll quickly see that this counterargument is, in fact, a fallacy.

The consumerization of healthcare is transforming the industry

Patient satisfaction is now just as critical in healthcare as it is in traditional consumer-oriented industries. Today’s patients expect a retail-like experience, characterized by personalized, effective, and empathetic communication. This shift requires innovative communication solutions that bridge the gap between healthcare providers and patients. It means improving access to information, breaking down silos, maximizing interoperability, and embracing a mobile-first strategy to ensure effective communication.

The question then becomes: Can older adults keep up with this transition?

1) The population of unique patients, is equally distributed

Is the widely held belief that 80% of hospital patients are over the age of 65-70 accurate? This statement is often used as a justification for avoiding the implementation of digital solutions in hospitals—but is it actually true? Let’s first look at the correct data to better understand the hospital population.

It’s crucial to remember that hospitals serve patients of all ages, not just those over 65. The graph on the right provides an interesting breakdown of age groups and hospital visits. It’s important to note that the data represents the percentage of individuals within each age group who have had at least one visit to a medical specialist in a hospital.

As the data shows, a significant portion of unique hospital visitors are younger than 65. In conclusion, the claim that “our population is old” is not a valid reason to avoid digitization in healthcare. Additionally, market research conducted by a Dutch hospital also reveals that nearly 60% of the patients are under 60 years old.

Source: CBS, 2013

So, what’s going on here? The data shows that older adults visit hospitals more frequently, but this doesn’t mean that there are more older individuals visiting hospitals overall. When you look at unique visitors, the distribution is fairly even; the difference lies in the older population making more visits per year.

2) Older adults are more digitally skilled than we think.

Research by the Dutch Central Statistical Office (CBS, 2021) shows that many older adults are proficient in using digital technology for various tasks, such as scheduling online medical appointments, conducting digital banking, and shopping online. Specifically:

• 33% of people aged 75+ make online medical appointments—comparable to 43% of the total population.

• 83% of those aged 65–75 and 55% of those over 75 use digital banking—close to the 85% average across all age groups.

• 35% of individuals over 75 shop online, compared to 68% of those aged 65–75 and 77% of the general population.

• 49% of people over 75 use the internet to find health information, compared to 68% of those aged 65–75 and 73% overall.

Digitalization is essential for managing the ever-rising costs of healthcare. Hospitals want to ensure that the digital transition doesn’t alienate large portions of their population. For instance, one of our clients in a typical Dutch region conducted market research and found that 96% of the population owns a smartphone, and 78% of individuals aged 65+ are digitally proficient.

This data indicates that older adults are not as out of sync with the rest of the population in terms of digital skills as is often assumed.

3) Older adults find such assumptions patronizing.

As my father, now 81 years old, puts it:
“Despite my age, I don’t appreciate being treated like I’m incapable. I want to continue learning and remain an active participant in society.”

Assuming that older adults are unable to use digital tools for managing appointments, accessing lab results, or using mobile wayfinding in hospitals—due to a supposed lack of digital skills or smartphones—is both patronizing and demeaning.

Let’s treat this demographic with the respect they deserve, as full-fledged members of society.

4) Concerns about poor UI design are valid—but they always were.

It’s true that we must prioritize decent product design, particularly for user interfaces. They should be intuitive and accessible to as wide an audience as possible without being cognitively taxing.

However, there’s also a common misconception that anything digital is poorly designed and, therefore, inherently confusing for older adults. Have you ever considered how poorly physical wayfinding is designed in most hospitals? This is likely one of the key reasons why people continue to get lost in them.

In conclusion:

The idea that older adults can’t use digital tools is a fallacy and shouldn’t stand in the way of hospital digitalization.