Skilled Nursing News December 29, 2025
Significant reductions in depressive and anxiety symptoms were seen among nursing home residents who interacted with an AI-driven, voice-based telephone companion. This was especially true among residents whose anxiety and depression baseline was higher than the average resident.
The companion, Meela, was designed to reduce loneliness, depression and anxiety among older adults in post-acute and long-term care settings, according to a feasibility study published in the Journal of the Post-Acute and Long-Term Medical Association (JAMDA).
Twenty-eight residents enrolled, and 23 completed a four-week intervention that involved scheduled, on-demand phone conversations with the AI system. There was no internet required and no screens or new devices needed.
“During each call, Meela used speech recognition to transcribe participants’ responses, processed them using...
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