Cheshire County Council Reports on Success of Mainstreaming Telecare
Telecare users say county-wide deployment of advanced telecare solutions from Tunstall has provided them with security and an improved quality of life
[UKPRwire, Mon Feb 25 2008] Cheshire County Council has reported on the success of its county-wide telecare service, which is being used to deliver more proactive and timely care and an improved quality of life for older people and their carers.
In a recent survey of 128 people using telecare, 94% of respondents said that they are pleased with the service and reported that they felt telecare helped them to feel safer and more secure in their own home.
The survey also revealed that 90% of carers said telecare helped them in their role by giving them confidence that people they are caring for are safe when alone in their home, which provided them with peace of mind and greater independence in their personal life.
Vance Gallagher, telecare projects officer for Cheshire County Council said: “We wanted to evaluate how much of an impact telecare was having on service users and their carers, and the feedback we got back has been overwhelmingly positive.
“Some of the most popular sensors include the bed sensor and property exit sensor, which are particularly useful for people with dementia, alerting their carers if they have fallen out of bed or left the house during the night. This reassures the carer that they will be notified if something happens and the user feels secure that help is on hand if needed.
“Being able to stay in their own home for longer has made such a difference to the quality of life for service users and their carers – providing this type of support is the way forward for assistive technology. Mainstreaming telecare is something that needs to be considered by health and social care services across the country.”
One service user who is benefiting from a telecare package is 74-year old Mrs Armstrong who has Parkinson’s Disease, she lives on her own and has had sensors in her home for over 18 months. She has a fall monitor, a smoke detector, a bed monitor and a pull cord in her bathroom all of which are all linked to her Lifeline unit.
Mrs Armstrong speaks highly of the telecare service and said: “All the telecare sensors give me a lot of peace of mind because my main worry is falling. I’m very pleased with everything and it’s good to know someone is there in case there is a real emergency.”
The telecare supplied by leading telecare provider Tunstall, delivers a comprehensive way of proactively managing risks around the home, by raising an alarm to a monitoring centre or carer, if assistance is required.
Having secured £1m Government funding from the Preventative Technology Grant (PTG), Cheshire Social Services has successfully mainstreamed telecare across the county, by January 2008 providing tailored telecare packages to a total of 600 service users with long-term care needs.
Through early organisation and detailed planning, Cheshire surpassed its first year target for telecare, exceeding its goal of 280 telecare users by 40; in addition it has also provided telecare to an extra 57 service users on a short-term basis.
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About Tunstall
Tunstall is the market leading provider of telecare and telehealth solutions, with over 2.5 million users globally. Tunstall’s solutions support older people and those with long-term needs, to live independently, by effectively managing their health and well-being. Tunstall provides technology, expertise and advice to millions of people enabling them to lead independent more fulfilling lives. For more information on how telecare and telehealth can improve quality of life, visit www.tunstall.co.uk
Tunstall Contact
Stephen Aryan
01977 661234
stephen.aryan@tunstall.co.uk
Press Contact
Context
Craig Coward or Luke Ford
01625 511966
Tunstall@contextpr.co.uk
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