Technology Powers Elderly to a Better Quality of Life
Embracing the digital wave is not just a trend — it’s a global phenomenon shaping the way we live and connect with one another. With the support of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, the Hong Kong Society for the Aged recently launched a new initiative that is set to enhance social welfare services for the elderly — the Jockey Club OLink Hub. This three-year project is Hong Kong’s very first virtual elderly centre, aiming to promote digital inclusion and empower seniors to harness the power of technology for a better quality of life.
Through the Jockey Club OLink Hub, elderly people and their caregivers can access social welfare support from the comfort of their own homes, without time or geographical limitations. It also addresses the space insufficiency of elderly centres by providing online courses and interest classes, freeing up physical centres to expand their support services for residents and caregivers.
The online hub focuses on three areas: online learning, professional support, and capacity building. Through the hub, professionals from various fields offer specialised courses in health, elder care skills, life interests, digital information, financial management, and art & culture. Social workers also conduct online interest classes, enabling seniors and caregivers to learn flexibly and at their own pace.
To facilitate personalised support, the Jockey Club OLink Hub features an artificial intelligence chatbot called AI Assistant. This service assists elderly people and their caregivers in finding information on residential care homes and community care services. Appointments for online and offline professional social welfare support services and consultation can be easily booked.
The capacity-building aspect of the Jockey Club OLink Hub includes a wide range of learning videos on topics such as production, travel, and life, empowering elderly people to expand their horizons by making good use of information technology. The hub also provides an online sales platform for middle-aged and elderly entrepreneurs to sell their products and explore online business opportunities.
To celebrate the official commissioning of the Jockey Club OLink Hub, a public event named “Active Ageing, Infinite Gathering” Discovery Day was held in January at CIC — Zero Carbon Park. The event featured various game booths, exhibitions of handicrafts made by creative elderly, workshops on health and financial management, a gerontechnology experience area, as well as interactive task zones. It attracted over 4,000 elderly citizens, carers, representatives from social welfare organisations, universities and companies online and offline.