Challenges & opportunities
Health & social care
Escalating demands from ageing communities, increased incidence of long-term conditions, financial constraints and workforce pressures means that there is an urgent need to develop new ways of working. Digital health and technology enabled care solutions have an important role to play.
We support commissioners and providers of health and social care to implement technologies and technology enabled services, supporting carers, promoting wellbeing and choice and empowering people to pursue as independent, healthy and active a life as possible whatever their age and circumstances. Our focus is on enabling solutions that are:
Inclusive
Integrated
Person centred
Preventative
Scalable
Sustainable
Cost effective
We have worked extensively with local authorities, care providers and NHS partners to implement technology enabled care services at scale, promoting cultural change and providing substantial returns on investment in terms of economic benefits and better care outcomes.
Increasing complexity
The increasing range of digital healthcare applications offers the potential for prevention and better management of long-term conditions, including by people themselves, leading to improved quality of life, fewer exacerbations, reduced expenditure, reduced pressure on services and avoidance of preventable deaths.
Active monitoring
Active monitoring via solutions that leverage the power of the internet of things can help to identify emerging concerns, enabling targeted, early intervention to prevent unchecked deterioration in health and wellbeing. Telecare services provide people with confidence to maintain their independence as well as playing a vital role in reablement services. Such solutions prevent admissions and re-admissions to residential care and hospital and enable people to return home from hospital and residential care at the earliest opportunity.
Lifelong support
People requiring lifelong support, for example because of a learning disability, are often prevented from realising their ambitions and potential by the absence of support solutions that keep them safe but at the same time enable them to enjoy active, independent lives. Increasingly care technology solutions are proving to be highly effective in giving people greater freedom to pursue their lifestyle of choice.
Technology programmes
Technology and programmes that promote digital inclusion and help people to stay connected can have a profound impact on social isolation and wellbeing.
COVID-19
COVID-19 has had a dramatic impact on hospitals and primary care. The material increases in the deployment of technology enabled care early in the pandemic supported UK hospitals to accelerate the discharged of 17,000 patients. Primary health was also impacted as GP’s have had to embrace online consultations. So much more can be achieved through the development of next generation technology enabled care service models, including increased deployment of remote monitoring and self management solutions.
Care providers
Residential and domiciliary care providers are able to transform the services they offer by embracing TEC solutions to improve the range, quality and efficiency of services to clients whilst at the same time gaining commercial advantage.
Housing sector
Providers of retirement housing and supported housing are already facing significant technological challenges due to changing commissioning priorities and the need to remodel support provision and calls systems.
Further challenges lie ahead because many of the 800K call points located within grouped supported housing accommodation will require updating to digital between now and the end of 2024. In managing the upgrade, the cost difference between good and bad practice can be significant. We can help housing clients to safely navigate those waters whilst also supporting them to improve services by incorporating next-generation care technology.
When we advise on solutions, safety and security is a paramount consideration. Options include:
Digital participation media via a range of channels to suit individual preferences and requirements
Digital emergency call systems and monitoring suites
Next generation telecare and telehealth applications including ambient monitoring and internet of things applications
Home automation systems
Support models that apply background monitoring applications to enabling people to set, monitor and achieve their goals
Digital support plans
Education and training modules
Applications that apply artificial intelligence and machine learning
Video consultations
Solutions that incorporate verification of care and support delivery
Applications that support management of buildings and facilities
Network upgrade
Openreach confirms that analogue telephone equipment and services will be decommissioned by the end of 2025 and that Communications Providers such as BT and Virgin will need to transition their customers to digital products and services by this date at the latest. However, the transition programme has already started and many customers will need to be offered alternatives much earlier than this. Housing Groups are increasingly needing to commission independent advice on future proofing systems so that they continue to operate across the transition from analogue to digital telephone networks and to evaluate options for implementing technology enabled care and support models for their residents. We offer technical and operational expertise and experience to support you to evaluate existing infrastructure and services, develop options appraisals and implement new systems and services.
Digital solutions
Digital solutions offer many different ways to improve services for all client groups across residential care, retirement housing, floating support services and independent living schemes. Opportunities exist to enable individuals to achieve greater control over their lives and life choices, connect people to their families and communities, identify early signs of emerging concerns, target daily care and support towards early intervention and greatest need, facilitate remote observation and informed consultations, improve person centred support planning by integrating monitoring data within the support plan, channel media to keep people informed and enable them to improve their health and wellbeing, improve data on outcomes and benefits for clients and commissioners.
Technology enabled care sector
The technology enabled care (TEC) sector itself is facing unprecedented challenges and opportunities.
These include industry consolidation, the emergence of next generation digital applications and new entrants to the market, the switch from analogue to digital telephone networks, the changing commissioning environment and convergence of telecare, telehealth and internet of things solutions. As the market dynamics continue to change at a rapid pace the need to be flexible and adapt quickly will be at a premium.
We bring together expertise and experience from across the TEC value chain. This includes expertise gained in developing and operating digital and analogue TEC systems and implementing ground-breaking and highly successful TEC business models. Whether you are looking for marketing support as a new market entrant or as an established market player looking to explore something new as a specific project we are here to help and support.
Digital transformation
Consumers of health and social care services will increasingly demand digitally enabled services. The pandemic has seen an explosion of online transactions across the world building on a pre-existing impetus already well established. Digital capability and focus have become a key recipe for success for businesses and services and this is influencing investment and procurement decisions and access to capital. At the same time digital exclusion is becoming a pressing concern and threatens to accentuate existing inequalities in respect of access to services and economic and social wellbeing. We expect this will be a key focus for the commissioning agenda going forward.
The growing range of digital healthcare applications offers the potential for prevention and better management of long-term conditions, including by people themselves, leading to improved quality of life, fewer exacerbations, reduced expenditure, reduced pressure on services and avoidance of preventable deaths.
Post-pandemic
We believe that the pandemic, changing commissioning priorities, integration of health and social care and emerging technologies create new opportunities for technology suppliers and service providers across the whole TEC sector. However, selection of strategies and technologies is the key to success as we emerge into the post Covid world. We have experience of developing services and building successful businesses across all sectors and can support you to plan your next steps.
Mergers & acquisitions
The TEC sector is attracting increasing interest from investors whilst consolidation within the existing sector continues at pace. With the benefit of significant sector specific experience we are able to provide support across the mergers and acquisitions process and in all the phases involved setting up new TEC businesses.
