Innovation spurred by enormous challenges
Three years in the past, at first of the pandemic, we started an bold venture to ship hundreds of iPads out to care properties. We knew care employees had been dealing with unprecedented challenges and we wished to verify they’d the fundamental know-how infrastructure to assist video consultations with well being professionals and to verify residents may keep in touch with family and friends whereas visiting was restricted.
Quick ahead to now, and we now have a serious programme underway, with a dedication from the federal government to speculate not less than £150 million within the digital transformation of the adult social care sector in England.
I usually mirror on how a lot our strategy was knowledgeable by what we discovered from that preliminary iPad venture, each from its successes and the errors we made. We all know it’s very important to work carefully with the sector, to take heed to what you need, and in addition to grasp what boundaries you is likely to be dealing with, so we will adapt our strategy.
We all know there’s nobody dimension matches all resolution to any drawback. In our present programme, we now have an area strategy to how we allocate funding and assist to social care which helps us have higher insights into what’s happening in your space and the way we will work collectively to implement know-how.
A framework to degree the sphere
We additionally know individuals working throughout the sector have a variety of digital abilities. For some individuals, simply the point out of the phrase “digital” can fill them with dread whereas different individuals can’t get sufficient of tech and devices. With this in thoughts we now have revealed a digital skills framework geared toward enhancing digital literacy throughout social care and well being.
The framework was developed with assist from Skills for Care and with enter from care suppliers and organisations throughout the social care and well being sectors. The ultimate model will quickly be accessible on-line to assist social care employers to plan employees coaching or for people to consider their very own skilled improvement.
In our work with care suppliers, we nonetheless hear tales about how these early iPads are in use in care properties and it’s nice to learn the way their use has expanded past their authentic goal. We’ve heard many examples of employees utilizing them to enter digital care plans and order drugs on-line.
Residents proceed to make use of them to speak with family and friends far-off however the most effective tales I heard lately was of the care house the place the iPad is used to handle the residents personal TikTok channel and to watch on-line views of their movies!
A willingness to embrace the brand new
Over the previous yr, I’ve been extremely impressed by the innovation I’ve seen within the sector and by the keenness to undertake new approaches. Greater than half of CQC registered suppliers within the sector at the moment are utilizing digital care planning options, with hundreds having taken up funding accessible to implement considered one of our assured digital options.
We need to ensure everybody has the chance to make the transfer away from paper and in the direction of digital file holding and we are going to proceed to supply funding, which you’ll be able to entry by way of your ICS (built-in care system).
We’re additionally turning our consideration in the direction of how different applied sciences can assist you in delivering top quality care, or assist individuals to stay independently at house for longer. Easy instruments like iPads and even good audio system have a spot in serving to to attain this in addition to extra tailor-made options comparable to falls prevention know-how. We’ll be sharing our plans for a way suppliers can entry our CareTech funding supply over the following few weeks.
Lastly, we’re additionally working behind the scenes to launch a brand new web site (which shall be stay later in the summertime) to make it simpler so that you can discover all the things it’s essential profit from the funding, coaching, and steerage accessible to assist you benefit from digital approaches.
Within the meantime, there’s more info about the funding and skills support available to providers or alternatively, you possibly can e-mail us at england.adultsocialcare@nhs.internet.
This text was first revealed within the April challenge of Caring Times.
