Friends of the Elderly has used technology to reduce hospital admissions from three care homes by 20%.
It has been working with Allycare and KareInn on technology to alert care staff to abnormal movement. The technology links acoustic monitoring with electronic care planning in its care homes.
The charity received a Social Care Digital Pathfinders grant through NHS Digital’s Digital Pathfinders project, which it used to integrate the technology.
The system allows the care team to safely respond to alerts and offer assistance before a resident falls.
55% reduction in falls
Between the system's launch in September 2019 and June 2020, three care homes, comprising 90 registered beds, have participated in the pilot.
Allycare’s wireless-enabled acoustic monitoring devices were installed in residents’ rooms with their explicit consent. The device filters out background noise unrelated to the person’s activity, works out their activity profile based on sounds they make, then classifies and interprets sounds according to whether they are normal or abnormal for that person.
As a result, the device can identify night time events such as unusual movement or calling for help and raise an alert to the care home staff.
The charity has experienced a 55% reduction in night time falls and a 20% reduction in hospital admissions, compared to the previous nine months.
It has also seen a 75% reduction in the number of unnecessary physical night time checks conducted by staff.
Jessica Stone, head of marketing and communications at Friends of the Elderly, said: “We have been delighted with the results of the pilot project. The project is supporting us to continue to provide the best possible care, respond to any night time concerns more quickly and to deliver better resident health and wellbeing.”
Related articles
