£3 million investment for social care technology

The government has announced £3 million of funding to transform technology in social care in an attempt to improve people's independence and reduce avoidable hospital admissions.

Four projects have received a share of £3 million from the Adult Social Care Technology Fund. The funding is to be used to identify care-focused technology solutions that have the potential for wider rollout within the sector.

National Care Group is to receive over £300,000 to improve the quality of medication management and recording and promote independence in taking medication using an Electronic Medication Administration Record System.

Shropshire Council, in partnership with domiciliary care providers, will benefit from funding of almost £1.2 million over two years to embed technology in people’s homes alongside a virtual care delivery service to help meet care and support needs digitally.

Reading Borough Council, in partnership with Henley Business School, will be using funding of just over £1 million to trial and understand the benefits and potential of sensors technology to monitor any significant changes to a person’s daily habits that may cause concern.

Finally, Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board: NHS Greater Manchester and the University of Manchester and partners will receive almost £380,000 to deliver a project to determine the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of using a digital falls prevention programme for older people living the in the community who receive care and support at home.

Minister for care, Helen Whately, said: "I’m delighted to announce the projects receiving the first £3 million of our adult social care technology fund today. These exciting projects will use technology to improve quality of care and help people live independently for longer. More care at home and more personalised care is what people want and helps reduce pressure on the NHS.

"We are also investing in digital care records to join up care and reduce the burden of admin on staff. I look forward to seeing these projects develop and scale up the use of technology in social care, better meeting people’s care needs and helping us build a sustainable care system."

Charlotte Hall, programme manager, Shropshire Council, says: "We are thrilled to have been awarded the CareTech funding, enabling us to further develop and expand our virtual care offer in Shropshire. This is particularly beneficial to individuals that live in rural, hard to reach areas in the county where it can be difficult to find care availability or for those that are reluctant to have carers entering their homes, but require some degree of care and support to enable them to remain independent and in their homes for longer.

"This funding will enable the project to expand, reaching more people and allowing us to test new approaches to social care delivery."

Image by Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay