CAST-IAHSA Australia Technology Forum 31 August

August 18, 2015 | by

As part of the joint ACSA (Aged & Community Services Australia)-IAHSA (International Association of Homes and Services for the Ageing) conference 31 August-4 September in Perth, there will be a half-day session sponsored by LeadingAge CAST (Center for Aging Services Technologies) on 31 August. The conference will feature the tools which CAST has developed to help providers better understand, plan for, select and implement appropriate technologies to support self-management, independence and facilitate the delivery of services to the home. Featured speakers are from CAST–Majd Alwan–and from providers such as New York’s Selfhelp, The Salvation Army and It’s Never 2 Late. Session page. Conference information and booking.  Australian Ageing Agenda Technology Review

LeadingAge CAST updates its telehealth selection portfolio (US)

July 17, 2015 | by

[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/LeadingAge_Square_Logo_Large.jpg” thumb_width=”100″ /]LeadingAge, the association of over 6,000 non-profit providers of aging services (the US chapter of IAHSA), this week issued an updated version of its telehealth selection portfolio, adding six new products to the online selection tool and product matrix, in addition to a new interactive guide (requires log in). Developed by their Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST), the selection tool and product matrix exhaustively compare 28 different products from 23 vendors across 220 different functionalities. An indispensable help for those involved in the selection and purchasing of telehealth for senior housing, post-discharge/rehabilitation and home health. LeadingAge release. Hat tip to Scott Code of CAST.

LeadingAge/CAST telehealth comparison tools; Independa whitepaper (US)

March 17, 2014 | by

A release from telehealth/TV + internet-based remote care services developer Independa drew this Editor’s attention to several useful new tools from non-profit aging services provider/supplier association LeadingAge‘s Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST). If you are outside the US, the technologies may not apply, but it’s a useful model for comparing and evaluating telehealth technology and services in long-term care:

  1. The Telehealth and Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) Selection Tool helps the user identify needs and provides choices of available products and the functionalities they offer.
  2. “Telehealth and Remote Patient Monitoring for Long-Term and Post-Acute Care” is a whitepaper which explains their methodology and defining telehealth and remote patient monitoring (RPM) technologies, uses and benefits.
  3. The Telehealth and RPM Selection Matrix has an extensive comparison of technologies with features detailed by business line (e.g. acute care), system type, embodiment (type of unit), program development and support, hardware and software (front-end and ancillary).

Independa in their release (PDF) highlights their inclusion in the CAST tools. The Independa TV with embedded remote care services, developed in partnership with LG, was also reviewed in a recent whitepaper written by aging services researcher Laurie Orlov, focusing on its potential utilization in post-acute care transitions to the home and skilled nursing.

A change of guard at GrandCare Systems

November 14, 2013 | by

This Editor has often referred to her former competitor GrandCare Systems as one of the ‘grizzled pioneers’ on the Conestoga Wagons of Telecare–even more grizzled than QuietCare (circa 2003-4) since their ur-system dates back to 1995-6, when it kept track of founder and CEO Charlie Hillman’s mother Clara. In the years since, the closely-held company has broadened its original telecare and activity monitoring tech into telehealth, socialization and home automation/monitoring into the most fully featured system in telecare/telehealth for older adults. Without making huge splashes, being beholden to VCs or moving from bucolic West Bend, Wisconsin, the company has grown through multiple alliances, the most unusual being home automation association CEDIA. GrandCare has a residential base of customers but has also developed a solid footing in senior communities both in assisted and independent living. Earlier this year, they reached into UK to partner with Saga [TTA 24 Jan, 10 Jan] and received the CE Mark for approval of its telehealth features for EU distribution.

The news is that they have a new CEO–Daniel Maynard, who is joining from (more…)