Telecare Aware

Smart thinking on telecare

Guy Dewsbury, based in the Computing Department, Lancaster University consults and writes on matters to do with home automation and telecare. His web page ‘Telecare: the SMART Thinking FAQ‘ in particular is worth reading, and the rest of his site is likely to interest you too.
 
Axistive Assistive Technology News Portal

This offers free news, articles, product reviews and product and vendor information on assistive technology devices covering vision, hearing, mobility, learning and communication devices.

Quality Healthcare at Home

The all-Ireland Quality Healthcare Group is extending its reach into home-based services with telecare and telehealth.

Rather short notice, but better than never - this Health Service Journal conference and exhbition on long term conditions on 12 October will interest some Telecare Aware readers.

This addition to the video library should give ammunition to all who are looking for substantial investment in telecare, along the lines that London Borough of Newham intends.

The video itself shows how Westminster invested many millions in wireless CCT systems to help keep its citizens and visitors safe on the streets. How about a similar spend to keep them safe in their homes? You need to be flash enabled and turn your sound on to view the Wireless City video on the Cisco website. (6:30 mins) (May take a few moments to load.)

The 2006 Frost & Sullivan Award for Product Innovation in the European Social Alarms Market was presented to IST International Security Technology Oy, for its Vivago product range; known in the UK as WristCare and marketed by Vivatec. Press release.

Police, ambulance and fire services in Knowle, Bristol invite older residents to a coffee afternoon to give them advice and information around fire safety and personal safety. Money bags and personal safety alarms will be given to attendees by police and the fire officers will be supplying free smoke alarms and offering free fitting and home fire safety visits. What a wonderful, but missed, opportunity to promote the benefits of telecare! Local news story. 

Not yet a fully developed product, but an indication that it is not only companies and universities in the ‘developed’ countries that have their eyes on this market. Read more. 

“In the future, we believe ‘assistive technologies’ such as those which can measure gait when a senior person walks down a hall, or diagnose whether a person has had a stroke during the night, point the way forward for independent living. These apartments are a 2006 step in that direction.” News story. 

The website now has ‘live chat’ to answer people’s questions. Visit website.

The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) will begin drafting a specification this year for use of Bluetooth in medical devices, with the new profile available for use in devices in the first half of 2007. There are already Bluetooth-enabled medical devices on the market but these are based on proprietary technology. The creation of an industry standard design profile will ensure interoperability and proliferate the use of the technology. According to Michael Foley, executive director of the Bluetooth SIG, ” Bluetooth technology is ideally suited for [such monitoring and] will provide a better quality of life for patients while reducing the cost of healthcare.” Medgadget article.