talk with Dr. Guo Zhang, Deputy Chief Physician of Neurosurgery at Zhangzhou Hospital Headquarters
As part of my research into ageing, digital accessibility and healthcare, I interviewed Dr. Guo Zhang, Deputy Chief Physician in the Department of Neurosurgery at Zhangzhou Hospital. The interview helped me understand how elderly patients currently navigate healthcare services, and where difficulties still exist despite the support already provided by hospitals.
Existing Support Within the Hospital
One of the most important findings from the interview was that hospitals already have a range of support systems for elderly patients.
According to Dr. Guo, volunteers and staff are distributed across important service areas of the hospital. They can help elderly patients who have difficulties using digital machines, identifying the correct department, finding the location of a clinic, or understanding the hospital’s navigation process.
For elderly patients with limited mobility, hospitals can also provide wheelchairs and stretchers. If an elderly person arrives alone and requires assistance, staff and volunteers can provide support throughout the healthcare journey.
This made me realise that the problem is not simply that elderly people are “unable to use technology”. There is already a human support network around them. The challenge is how these different forms of support work together with digital healthcare systems.
Not All Elderly Patients Have the Same Needs
Dr. Guo also highlighted an important distinction between elderly patients.
Some older people remain cognitively clear and physically capable. They may be able to complete the entire healthcare process independently and therefore rarely ask staff for help.
However, patients with cognitive impairment, reduced physical ability or other functional difficulties often require family members to accompany them. In these situations, family members may also need to communicate the patient’s symptoms and healthcare needs on their behalf.
This suggests that “elderly users” should not be treated as one homogeneous group. Their healthcare needs can vary significantly depending on physical ability, cognitive ability, digital literacy and whether they have someone accompanying them.
Offline Access Is Still Important
Another important point from the interview was that elderly patients do not necessarily need to use a smartphone or WeChat to make an appointment.
Although appointments can normally be made through the hospital’s WeChat account or mini-program, patients who cannot use smartphones can still go directly to the service desk. By presenting their medical insurance card, staff can check their appointment information and help them obtain a number.
For patients who have not made an appointment online, nurses can also assist them with an offline appointment.
This challenged one of my initial assumptions. The problem is not simply “elderly people cannot make digital appointments”. In reality, hospitals have already developed offline alternatives. The more important question is whether these alternatives can continue to support patients when their difficulties become more complex.
The Problem Beyond the Hospital
The most significant insight came when Dr. Guo discussed patients who have difficulty physically travelling to the hospital.
As a neurosurgery department, they often encounter patients with long-term consequences following conditions such as stroke. Some patients may have hemiplegia, severe mobility limitations or may be bedridden for long periods.
For these patients, attending a hospital appointment can require significant physical effort and assistance from family members.
In some cases, doctors may therefore communicate with the patient’s family or use video calls to observe the patient’s current condition, including their movement and language abilities. This allows doctors to assess whether the patient needs further treatment, hospitalisation or another follow-up appointment.
This was particularly meaningful for my research because it shifts the problem from “How can we help elderly people use healthcare technology?” to a broader question:
How can healthcare services support elderly and physically vulnerable patients when travelling to the hospital itself becomes a barrier?
From Digital Accessibility to Continuity of Care
Before this interview, I was mainly interested in the difficulties elderly people experience when interacting with digital healthcare services, such as appointment booking and hospital navigation.
However, this interview helped me see that digital accessibility is only one part of the healthcare journey.
For some elderly patients, the difficulty begins before they even enter the hospital. They may struggle to leave home, require a family member to accompany them, or be unable to communicate their condition independently.
This means that an inclusive healthcare system should not only provide a simpler interface. It should also consider the entire pathway:
Home → Appointment → Travel → Hospital Navigation → Consultation → Follow-up
The interview therefore encouraged me to think beyond designing a “better healthcare app”. Instead, I am beginning to explore how digital tools, human assistance and healthcare services could work together to create a more continuous and accessible healthcare journey for older adults.
Key Insight
The biggest takeaway from this interview is that accessibility is not only about whether an elderly person can use technology. It is also about whether the healthcare system can adapt to their changing physical, cognitive and social circumstances.
Existing hospital staff and volunteers already provide important forms of support, but patients with severe mobility limitations or long-term conditions may still face difficulties accessing continuous care.
This has become an important direction for my project: rather than assuming that technology should replace human support, I want to explore how technology could connect, extend and complement the existing human support system.
This interview helped me move from thinking about “elderly people struggling with digital healthcare” towards a broader understanding of inclusive healthcare pathways for ageing populations.
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