Two tenders up in Scotland and Wales (UK)

February 1, 2017 | by

Susanne Woodman, our Reader who keeps an eye on telecare procurement tenders, has alerted our UK readers to two current postings:

Telecare IT Platform for East Lothian Council (Scotland).  This is for the purchase an integrated call handling facility and telecare asset management system to respond to alerts from telecare equipment in the homes of vulnerable people. Contract duration 60 months. Deadline 1 March. (Public Contracts Scotland)

NHS Wales Informatics Service–Velindre NHS Trust. The NHS in Cardiff, Wales is looking to appoint partners to develop solutions to engage citizens digitally in the proactive management of their health. It is anticipated that this could encompass a wide range of services from existing applications (Apps) to innovative joint developments. Contract notice will be published 4 April, but the notice as published does not have a deadline. (Tenders Electronic Daily)  See the Sell2Wales website for documentation.

Telecare: the cost of a failure (updated)

November 24, 2015 | by

The value of a telecare service, typified by the familiar red-button alarms worn round the neck or [grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/NHS-Highland-logo.jpg” thumb_width=”150″ /]wrist and providing the less able to confidently live an independent life is, of course, well known. Telecare also provides a range of unobtrusive wireless sensors that detects possible problems around the home such as a gas hob or tap left on,  smoke from a smouldering sofa where a cigarette may have fallen and so on.

There are many companies around the world providing telecare services. But what if the service suffers an interruption? What needs to be done and what is the cost?

The UK’s NHS in Scotland had to face these questions recently when the telecare service it provides in the Highland Council area suffered a total failure last week. The system had failed for about four hours last Saturday and, although a  backup system existed, that failed to deploy. (more…)

Scotland invests £30M over 3 years on telehealth (UK)

March 19, 2015 | by

In a news release this morning (19 March 2015) the Scottish Government said it is to allocate [grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/scotland-gov-logo1.gif” thumb_width=”150″ /]£200m over two years to support the implementation of health and social care integration.

According to the release the investment will extend the current Integrated Care Fund into 2016/17 and 2017/18, and comes on top of £100 million of funding already allocated for 2015/16. The money will be distributed among the 32 local NHS and social care partnerships that have been set up as part of the move towards integrated services.

The Integrated Care Fund forms part of over half a billion pounds of Government investment over the next three years that will be used to support integration, including £100 million over three years for delayed discharge, and £30 million over three years for Telehealth.

The Integrated Care Fund supports the implementation of plans to  bring together health and local authority care services by 1 April 2016.  This will give the partnerships the resources to focus on preventative care and early intervention as well as support for people with multiple and long-term conditions. (more…)

Scotland to invest additional £10m on telehealth

March 7, 2014 | by

The Scottish Health Secretary, Alex Neil, has announced the investment of an additional £10 million [grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Healthier-Scotland.jpg” thumb_width=”150″ /](about US $ 15 million) to support home health monitoring solutions across Scotland, the BBC has reported. This additional funding for the NHS Boards will enable people to use technology such as tablet computers and smartphones to monitor conditions such as diabetes, heart problems and lung problems at home, the report added.

In 2011, Nicola Sturgeon MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Health, Wellbeing and Cities Strategy in Scotland set out her strategic vision for achieving sustainable quality in the delivery of healthcare services across Scotland, in the face of the significant challenges of Scotland’s public health record, changing demography and the economic environment. The Scottish Government’s 2020 Vision is that by 2020 everyone is able to live longer healthier lives at home, or in a homely setting and, that Scotland will have a healthcare system where, amongst other goals, there will be a focus on ensuring that people get back into their home or community environment as soon as appropriate, with minimal risk of re-admission.

Mr Neil’s announcement was made during a debate in the Scottish Parliament entitled ‘Update on Delivering the 2020 Vision in NHS Scotland’. Mr Neil claims past efforts in telecare and telemedicine have meant that £2.8 million has been “ploughed back” into Scottish frontline services and reduced emergency admissions to hospital by 70 per cent.

Brief report on the European Telemedicine Conference, Edinburgh 29-30 October 2013

November 1, 2013 | by

The European Telemedicine Conference held in Edinburgh’s historic Assembly Rooms this week exceeded my expectations in many ways.

A vital requirement of all such events is good networking, which Edinburgh promoted most effectively. There was plenty of break time and lots of opportunity to see and meet people. There was a goodly number of stands too, where like-minded people could coalesce. For some there were personalised itineraries that helped as well. Then on the second day, a very deliberate effort was made (more…)

Two major telehealth and telecare programmes officially launched in Scotland

April 16, 2013 | by

Two major Telehealth and Telecare programmes worth £2.8 million were officially launched yesterday by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing Alex Neil MSP when he visited a local monitoring station within East Ayrshire Council. The Minister heard via video link from a patient who told the minister how the technology has made a difference to how she has been able to manage her COPD. More info: East Ayrshire pioneers new digital health system Cumnock Chronicle.