t the fourth TransferTalk hosted by TH OWL, Patrick Gaudl presented the Café TEA initiative, offering insights into the development and testing of accessible formats designed to improve digital health literacy.
How can older people and those in need of care be supported in using digital healthcare technologies independently? This is the central question behind the Café TEA project, led by Dr. Laura Moradbakhti. At the fourth TransferTalk hosted by OWL University of Applied Sciences and Arts (TH OWL), Patrick Gaudl, research associate in the Discrete Systems research group, presented the project and shared experiences from its practical implementation.
Three Projects, Different Perspectives
TransferTalk brings together researchers and representatives from industry and society to exchange ideas and explore opportunities for collaboration. The fourth edition focused on three TH OWL projects, each presenting its approach in a short elevator pitch. Alongside Café TEA, the event featured OWL TransferBuddy, which explores the use of humanoid robots to facilitate communication between research and industry, and KIWi, which investigates how artificial intelligence can support science communication.
Café TEA: Exploring Digital Health Technologies Together
Café TEA aims to make digital healthcare services more accessible, particularly for older people, individuals in need of care and family caregivers, while strengthening their ability to use digital technologies independently.
To achieve this, the project team worked with regional partners to develop and test various interactive learning and participation formats. During open consultation sessions and workshops, participants had the opportunity to learn about digital applications, try them out on test devices and share their questions and experiences. Topics included digital health and care applications, electronic patient records and online appointment booking services.
The activities took place at several locations, including the healthcare centres in Lügde and Oerlinghausen and anno 1578 in Lemgo's city centre. Direct interaction with participants provided valuable insights into the support people need when using digital healthcare technologies.
“Café TEA has shown us how important it is to bring research and new technologies directly to people. After all, these solutions can only make a real difference if they reach people in their everyday lives and are actually used. The strong interest in our consultation sessions and workshops, along with the direct exchange with participants, has also provided valuable input for our future research,” explains Dr. Laura Moradbakhti.
Connecting Research and Practice
At TransferTalk, guests were also encouraged to ask questions, participate in polls and share feedback on the projects presented. These discussions generated new ideas and perspectives for their further development.
The projects are part of TRiNNOVATION OWL, an initiative that enables researchers to test new approaches over a six-month period and explore opportunities for further research and collaboration.
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Auther: Mona Marie Brinkmann