The National Care Forum (NCF) will next week host a webinar to launch the Care Home of the Future campaign that aims to help the sector move towards a stronger future post-Covid by using state-of-the-art digital services.
Four technology providers - Ascom UK, Person Centred Software, Atlas EMAR and PainChek - are partnering for the campaign to help care home owners and staff go digital and to raise awareness of the benefits when technology is at the heart of care.
The providers believe digital services are proven to increase the cost-effectiveness of care, to improve outcomes, and to help with staff performance and retention.
With 70% of care homes still reliant on paper systems, the campaign organisers believe integrated, best-in-class technology must be central to their operation.
They have identified three stages to becoming a care home of the future. Firstly, the initial digitisation process by implementing a digital system.
Secondly, joining up care by integrating with best-in-field specialists to enable continuity of care. That is across care settings from primary to secondary to residential, and back into secondary care.
Thirdly, transforming care through data accessibility, incisive analysis and the ability to provide predictive and preventative care.
The hour-long ‘Where are you on your digital journey?’ webinar led by NCF executive director Vic Rayner (pictured) on Wednesday 24 June starts at 1.15pm.
“Covid-19 has shown us that good digital infrastructure and tools are essential. Where they were already in place, the transition to remote monitoring, consultation and support was swift and, in many cases, very effective,” said Rayner.
“The digital divide has been laid bare, and we need to ensure that our future focus and vision for care homes – for people, providers and government – is to rapidly build bridges and support, which enable all care homes to have in place the core architecture that enables a state of digital readiness for whatever happens next,” she added.
The Care Home of the Future campaign is also backed Care England, which will participate in the webinar launch event.
Care England chief executive Martin Green said: “Technology offers the opportunity for the care sector to move into the 21st-century and to deliver better outcomes for the people that we support, as well as reducing the burden on staff and improving efficiency”
Graham Care Homes owner Ernie Graham will be part of the webinar panel and will explain how he is using technology to improve care for residents and business performance.
“We need to be more accountable than ever for the care we provide to our residents, not just in evidencing what we did yesterday, but also in developing personalised plans for each person to meet their particular needs today, based on an intimate knowledge of their situation,” said Graham.
“Quite simply, integrated digital systems are the only way we can achieve this with the necessary levels of transparency,” he added.
