Yvona Vlach joined the McKechnie Family LIFE Home team in April 2024 as our Operations Coordinator. She is responsible for all general office and LIFE Home operations; serves as the first point of contact for clients and visitors; coordinates client reservations and visits of the research center; provides support to the LIFE Home team; and engages with other departments.
The McKechnie Family LIFE Home was pleased to welcome Dr. Chris Wickens during his visit on Tuesday April 16th, 2024. Dr. Wickens is a renowned scientist who has made important and lasting contributions to psychological science. He taught engineering and experimental
psychology, human factors engineering, and aviation psychology for 30 years at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. During his visit, he learned about different projects and technologies at the LIFE Home. He was really impressed by the advancement in the research and innovations to support people with a range of abilities. He shared lots of great research ideas with researchers who came by. We enjoyed showing the technologies at the LIFE Home as well as learning from Dr. Wickens!
Abbey is a senior at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, majoring in Interdisciplinary Health Sciences with a concentration in Health Technology and minoring in Chemistry. She is passionate about enhancing the interaction between humans and technology, particularly in the healthcare field.
Since Fall 2023, Abbey has been involved in home automation, developing technology instructions, managing websites, coordinating interns and researchers, and leading tour presentations at the McKechnie Family LIFE Home.
In the future, she hopes to work closely with users to improve health technology, design more intuitive user interfaces, and facilitate communication between users and researchers.
The McKechnie Family LIFE Home in partnership with IHSI hosted three sessions of the spring seminar series. The sessions addressed a range of topics in health technology. Participants also had the opportunity to attend a virtual tour of the LIFE Home. To learn more about this event check out this article from IHSI.
This webinar has provided me with information based on evidence and research that allow me to further question current anesthesia models. And also to look for ways that propofol is being used clinically.
Safeguarding Cognitive Function: Propofol’s Neuroprotective Role in Aging Mice Undergoing Surgery
Great presentation. Digestible bits of information and some good reminders woven between a little research.
Spring Forward: Daylight Savings Time’s Impact on Health and Well-Being
I enjoyed the webinar and would like more info on setting up DAB for our senior clients.
Embracing AI: Assistance for Enhanced Living
On February 16, 2024, the McKechnie Family LIFE Home hosted Industrial and Systems Engineering students as part of the 2024 Institute of Industrial Systems Engineers (IISE) Regional Conference for Middle Eastern Students. IISE provides leadership in developing industrial and systems engineering. This student-run organization provides professional, social, and service opportunities for students at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Attendees included undergraduate and graduate students. Our tour showcased current research projects, innovations, and how the industry is changing. The students learned a lot while interacting with the researchers and the smart technology robots in our space. The students were intrigued and discussed the possibilities in their work. There were lots of great ideas that flowed and hopefully a future for collaboration! It was a very successful visit, and the LIFE Home team was so happy to host a part of the conference.
McKechnie Family LIFE Home staff had the pleasure of attending and presenting at the Assistive Technology Industry Association (ATIA) conference on January 25th – 27th in Orlando, FL. ATIA is a global leader in assistive technology education and research and the premier organization for assistive technology manufacturers, developers, and resellers. ATIA 2024 was the place to be for the assistive technology community to connect, discover, and inspire. The LIFE Home team demonstrated technologies in our home simulation area remotely from the venue of the event and the audience was fascinated to see the advancements made in the area of assistive technologies through remote operations. They also showed the functions of the assistive robots and the home as well as the smart technology research currently being done. Their objective mission was to showcase how the LIFE Home helps advance the design of assistive technologies to support older adults and their care networks. Overall, it was a great conference to attend, and the team learned a lot while also showcasing and teaching others about the home!
On December 12th, the McKechnie Family LIFE Home team welcomed guests to explore the research being conducted in our facility, view the spaces, and interact with the technology. Research demonstrations and posters were presented by AHS faculty, staff, post-docs, graduate students, and undergraduate students. The guests, including some alumni, were impressed by the wide range of projects being conducted. Our robots were a big hit as people loved interacting with them and thinking about how they might be used in their own research. Overall, our AHS open house was a big success for influencing innovation and introducing more people to the wonderful research, education, and outreach potential of the McKechnie Family LIFE Home. Thank you to all who came as well as participated. Happy holidays!
If you want to see a short video of our event, click here!
On October 4th, 2023, McKechnie Family LIFE Home staff members attended the 2023 Chittenden Symposium at the I-Hotel. This symposium brought faculty and students together from the Departments of Kinesiology & Community Health and Industrial and Enterprise System Engineering at Illinois. We presented a poster about the LIFE Home to share our resources and describe current research projects. We met a lot of people from across campus and look forward to future collaboration opportunities. Overall, it was a wonderful experience for the team, and were inspired after the meeting…innovation was in the air
The McKechnie Family LIFE Home welcomes two new robots to the facility: PARO and Moxie. PARO is a therapeutic robot that is designed to provide emotional support and companionship. PARO’s features include interactive sensors that allow it to respond to its environment and interact meaningfully. It responds to human contact by making various sounds, moving its head, blinking its eyes, and even wiggling its flippers. Come check out the LIFE Home’s new robot pet. We also have our sassy and fun robot Moxie. She loves cracking jokes and making people laugh. We have introduced her to many groups who have visited the LIFE Home, and everyone loves her. She is a must-see when you visit. She offers play-based conversational learning to teach emotional and social skills to people of different abilities, limitations, and ages. Come check out our new robots! They would love to meet you!
The McKechnie Family LIFE Home had the pleasure of hosting two MS-HT events this August! One was on August 3rd, 2023 when the LIFE Home had an open house that greeted graduating students and board members to look at our facility and the robots. We also had the pleasure of meeting their families as well! A lot of collaboration and connections were made during this open-house event! The second event hosted at the McKechnie Family LIFE Home was on August 18th, 2023, where our staff welcomed new students and their families. The LIFE Home got to meet the new students interested in working on research in our facility! We are very happy with our turnout at these events and all the interest in collaboration and new research. Innovation is in the air!
