Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41963815›Full record

Trial reportBMC geriatrics2026

The effect of digital communication technology on older adults' formal care use in Norway: a randomized controlled trial.

Kristoffer Eikemo, Ira Malmberg-Heimonen, Erik B Rasmussen, Björg S A Thordardottir, Anne Grete Tøge, Kjetil A van der Wel

Registry-linked trialAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in BMC geriatrics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05919355 (BoVEL), which is not on this map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT05919355 naunknown statusnot on this map

BoVEL: Bo Lenger Hjemme Med Sosial Velferdsteknologi [Live Longer at Home With Social Welfare-Technology]

TypeinterventionalSponsorOslo Metropolitan UniversityRan2022 to 2024Enrolled1,114ConditionsSocial Isolation, Well-being, Quality of Life, Mental HealthArmsOffer to try Komp
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Kristoffer EikemoDepartment of Social Work, Child Welfare and Social Policy, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway. kristoffer.eikemo@oslomet.no.
Ira Malmberg-HeimonenDepartment of Social Work, Child Welfare and Social Policy, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway.
Erik B RasmussenDepartment of Social Work, Child Welfare and Social Policy, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway.
Björg S A ThordardottirDepartment of Rehabilitation Science and Health Technology, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway.
Anne Grete TøgeWork Research Institute, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway.
Kjetil A van der WelDepartment of Social Work, Child Welfare and Social Policy, Oslo Metropolitan University, Oslo, Norway.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundNorway’s population is ageing, increasing the pressure on already strained health and care services. In response, Norwegian policymakers have promoted a strategy of aging in place, i.e., that older adults are encouraged to live longer in their own homes. Low social contact is one of many risk factors for transitions to long-term care facilities. Digital technologies that facilitate social contact have been promoted as promising tools for increasing social contact among older adults and may also contribute to reduce strain on health and care services. In this RCT, we evaluate whether a digital communication technology, Komp, may prolong home-dwelling and reduce the need for formal care services among frail older adults. Given Komp’s documented potential to promote social connectedness and facilitate informal care, we hypothesize that Komp prolongs home-dwelling and reduces reliance on formal care services.

methodsWe compared an intervention group offered to try Komp (n = 516) with a control group receiving services as usual (n = 595). 150 Komp units were delivered. Outcomes were assessed 28 months after randomization. We obtained administrative data from Statistics Norway and service use data from the boroughs’ journal records. We analyzed 1,099 participants (mean age: 84.6 years, range: 67–98; 64.7% [n = 711] female) using Cox proportional hazards regression (primary outcomes) and ZINB and ZIP regression models (secondary outcomes).

resultsThe intervention group had a higher, though non-significant, risk of moving to long-term care facilities compared to the control group (HR = 1.162 [0.944, 1.431]). ZINB regression models indicated that the intervention group experienced a reduction of five days of short-term institutional stays (IRR=0.833 [0.728, 0.952]). There were no differences between groups in the amount of other formal care services received. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: The implementation of Komp did not prolong home-dwelling among frail older adults. However, the results showed a reduction in formal care services, indicating that Komp may reduce some strain on health and care services. Future studies should evaluate the effect of other types of digital communication technologies on objective outcomes.

trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov: NCT05919355. Date of registration: 16 June 2023.

Indexed as

Digital TechnologyFrail ElderlyIndependent LivingAgedAged, 80 and overAging in PlaceDigital HealthFemaleHome Care ServicesHumansMaleNorwayAge in placeHome and community-based care and servicesIntervention study design/analysisLong-term careSurvival analysis

Identifiers

PMID41963815
PMCPMC13195867

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Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.