Necessity is the mother of invention, they say, so expect to see major innovations in health care in the years to come.

That害羞草研究所檚 the message Interior Health CEO Chris Mazurkewich and board chairman Erwin Malzar, brought to Kelowna city council Monday, as part of the Imagine Kelowna speaker series.

Mazurkewich told council that elderly, frail people who are in institutions or require extensive

at-home care are already a significant expense for Interior Health. If that trend carries on, when the baby boomers hit their final days and the service model doesn害羞草研究所檛 evolve, the cost could be crippling.

害羞草研究所淏asically, four per cent of the (current) population requires about 41 per cent of the services IH provides,害羞草研究所� said Mazurkewich.

The plus-75 age group is 10 per cent of the Central Okanagan population, according to the health authority害羞草研究所檚 figures. In 2040, it projects that population will have grown to 14 per cent.

If the proportion of people needing extra care maintains at four per cent, the cost of health care on taxpayers will balloon.

In fact, the current $2-billion budget for Interior Health is expected to nearly triple by 2040.

There are a variety of ways health authorities across the province will have to change in the years to come to get ahead of that alarming trend害羞草研究所攁nd some might already be in the palm of your hand.

害羞草研究所淗ealth apps are only getting better and better and better,害羞草研究所� said Mazurkewich. 害羞草研究所淥ur physicians these days, they communicate with iPhones, they send X-rays by iPhones, and all those kinds of things. That害羞草研究所檚 only going to improve.害羞草研究所�

As that improves, he said, it only makes sense that the patient component will follow.

害羞草研究所淚f you think from a health monitoring perspective, what can we monitor at home?害羞草研究所� he said. 害羞草研究所淚 think of my mom, who is 86害羞草研究所� I would love to have the tools at her place that we could monitor her activity. I know she害羞草研究所檚 fallen and lain there for four to five hours at a time.害羞草研究所�

If monitoring tools were in place, they could have helped her more quickly.

Of course, technology would extend beyond merely watching.

害羞草研究所淲e have virtual physician offices already in Kelowna,害羞草研究所� he said. 害羞草研究所淒o I really have to go to a physician害羞草研究所檚 office? I talk to my kids by FaceTime and Skype. Do I have to see a physician face-to-face every time?害羞草研究所�

Those face-to-face meetings require transportation and parking, and it would be both cheaper and simpler to create electronic meetings.

害羞草研究所淚 think in 2040, that害羞草研究所檚 going to happen,害羞草研究所� Mazurkewich said. 害羞草研究所淭here are certain things you have to be there for in person, but most physician visits are a five-minute involvement and you don害羞草研究所檛 have to be there in person.害羞草研究所�

Coun. Mohini Singh questioned whether seniors of the future would be keen on losing their in-person doctor visits, noting she can害羞草研究所檛 imagine going online for such a thing.

People, Mazurkewich said, simply adapt. 害羞草研究所淲e hear that all the time,害羞草研究所� he said. 害羞草研究所淢y mother started using email at 80 so she could connect to her grandchildren. Now when one visits, she gets on FaceTime to call other grandchildren.害羞草研究所�

He added the online visits would create more opportunity for family members to attend doctors appointments for their elderly loved ones, and that could make a big difference in treatment.

That said, treatment is also something that may change. 害羞草研究所淚 am old enough to remember Participaction,害羞草研究所� he said.

害羞草研究所淚 find it amazing that we know that eating, sleeping, exercising and having some friends are the best things you can do for yourself from a health care perspective,害羞草研究所� he said.

So there should be, going forward, a bigger emphasis on health promotion and prevention.

害羞草研究所淭he problem is that it takes 10 to 15 years to see a return, but the places that have done it have all seen a return,害羞草研究所� her said.

And, he said, Kelowna has enacted policies that will also help in those aims.

害羞草研究所淎ll of those pieces I see come together in Kelowna, and I害羞草研究所檓 quite proud of Kelowna and the direction it害羞草研究所檚 been headed,害羞草研究所� he said.

The city害羞草研究所檚 Imagine Kelowna series focuses on future trends in topics such as employment, technology, climate change and health care.