Using technology to monitor care home residents’ health remotely

Remote monitoring within the social care setting has cemented its worth following the unprecedented care climate thrust upon us by the pandemic. Technology was a pivotal solution in limiting face-to-face contact and many care providers across the UK employed traditional hardware devices that could monitor the vital signs of residents —which prompted some impressive developments within remote monitoring technology. As many fundamental care techniques have returned, there has been a residual appreciation for telemedicine and its ability to alleviate basic tasks from care workers.

What is more, telemedicine is increasingly interacting with Artificial Intelligence (AI), which provides scope for technology providers to emulate clinical expertise through complex and functional solutions. Not only can this serve to limit the number of chronic diseases in care homes, but it can also support the social care sector in the UK, which is already operating beyond capacity.

But the question remains: how close are we to creating a technology platform that can provide functional and accurate advice in line with the thought process of a clinician — or are we already there?