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Technology will never replace people as the essential ingredient for long-term care excellence. But it can deliver vital insight and support to improve the lives of both residents and staff. Read about how Ascom’s evolving relationship with UK digital care technology specialist, Person Centred Software, is achieving this, and why integration partnerships are fundamental to the future of long-term care.
Care homes have never been under greater pressure. The pandemic, an aging population, and the continuing staffing crisis have created a perfect storm where resources are squeezed yet expectations are high.
Care excellence directly correlates to a facility’s ability to deliver a truly personal experience – treatment, interactions and planning tailored to every individual. But how is this to be achieved when resources are stretched and communication paths are often siloed? By leveraging technology.
More specifically, integrated technology that supports near real-time data sharing and recording to inform dispersed care teams and seamlessly coordinate time sensitive activities. Integration that eliminates information silos. Our relationship with digital care technology specialist, Person Centred Software, provides a good example of the advantages this delivers.
Over the last two years, Person Centred Software has provided over 13 thousand Ascom Myco3 smart phones to its long-term care customers.
By integrating directly to their digital care management system, Mobile Care Monitoring, this software in the smart phones has streamlined information workflows and coordination for caregivers, helping to enhance residents’ safety, privacy and the delivery of personalised care.
“Across our customer base we are looking at the efficient evidencing and monitoring of around 4 million care notes per day”, explains Jonathan Papworth - Founder of Person Centred Software, “so it’s clear to see why integrations like this are becoming so vital to efficient, quality care delivery. Ascom’s Myco3 has become a de facto standard for robust smart phones used in social care, and our relationship with them is helping us accelerate the adoption of digital technology across this sector.
“Customers are also starting to take on board additional Ascom products such as SmartSense, further supporting the personalized approach to long-term care that we champion”.
Customers such as Wren Hall - a specialist home based in Nottinghamshire UK, caring for individuals with dementia. Here, the integration between Person Centred Software and Ascom solutions including SmartSense (our sensor-based deviation monitoring system tailorable to an individual’s movement and behavioural habits), is delivering tangible benefits for both staff and those receiving care.
“We’ve been using Ascom smart phone solutions and Person Centred Software for some time. The co-ordinated, near-real-time communication and recording of activities and care data that this enables has helped us tremendously”, comments Anita Astle, manager at Wren Hall. “Adding SmartSense into that mix is an exciting evolution of an integrated digital ecosystem that is truly supporting our mission to deliver person-centric care.
“For example, through SmartSense, we are able to quickly see if an individual is experiencing more falls or waking more in the night – based on their specific habits, not simply on a ‘general average’. Crucially, the integration with Person Centred Software also means we can quickly reference this against their care record…changes to medication etc…enabling us to make informed deductions as to why this change may be happening. We can then adjust care planning for that individual accordingly and indeed, adjust health status monitoring parameters”.
The integration of these crucial sources of information, delivering a holistic view of each individual - their medication, movement habits and the care interactions that have taken place – is also proving a vital tool in areas such as funding support.
“One gentleman in our care”, adds Anita, “had been receiving 1:1 care but for a period showed signs of being more settled. However, he began to experience more falls and began getting out of bed more frequently. With the combined data logged between Smart Sense and Person Centred Software we were able to fully evidence this, reinstate 1:1 care and receive appropriate funding”.
Ascom’s relationship with Person Centred Software, and with all the technology partners we work with, is rapidly evolving and growing. Not because of some distant goal. It’s because of results like these. Because of the beneficial outcomes long-term care facilities are seeing today, for their patients and their staff. Imagine where these digital eco-systems will take us tomorrow.