Tuktu – Peer to Peer Elderly Caregiving platform

As the world gets smaller, the distance between families grows larger. An increasing number of people are living far away from their loved ones, either in another city or in a different country altogether. Many leave behind their parents and other elderly relatives, with the distance making it next to impossible to provide support for their aging loved ones. The COVID pandemic has exacerbated this problem further and left the senior community particularly vulnerable leading to situations where the elderly not only lack the social support structures normally provided by their kids, they also experience increased loneliness and uncertainty because of the physical distance from their loved ones. Additionally, children and loved ones with such barriers often experience stress and anxiety from not having adequate information on the condition of their loved ones. This project supports the creation of a supportive community and encourages advancement in non-formal senior care using a location-based mobile application (and web platform) that matches the elderly to part time (non-formal) care givers for errands and companionship. This project will fulfill both a need a need to improve access to of services to vulnerable populations and provide an opportunity for income for those facing economic hardship.

Faculty Supervisor:

Milind Kandlikar

Student:

Rebecca Kenny

Partner:

Tuktu.ca

Discipline:

Other

Sector:

Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

University of British Columbia