NEWS FROM ACROSS THE GLOBE Development of care properties in Finland

Belgium-based healthcare real estate investor Aedifica is investing €18m (£15.8m) in the development of a service community, a care home and two residential care centres for disabled people in Finland.

The residential care centre will be operated by Humana Finland, a leading Nordic care company that offers individual and family care services, personal assistance, elderly care and special services housing. Humana Finland currently already operates 15 care homes for disabled people in Finland.

In Kuopio (118,000 inhabitants), the team will develop a care home. Kuopio Torpankatu will accommodate 47 elderly people requiring continuous care. Construction works have already started and are expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2024. The building will be operated by Esperi, a private player with 20 years of experience in the healthcare sector, employing 6,800 staff in approximately 200 municipalities across Finland. Esperi provides a wide range of healthcare services to different target groups. The group already operates four Aedifica properties.

Global entries for Longitude Prize on Dementia

The Longitude Prize on Dementia has received 175 entries from innovators across the globe. It will reward AI and machine-learningbased technologies that provide personalised solutions to help people with dementia to live longer, higher quality lives at home. Launched in September 2022, the £4m prize is funded by Alzheimer’s Society and Innovate UK, and delivered by global innovation prize experts Challenge Works.

Of the applications entered, greatest representation came from innovators in the UK, with 89 entries received, followed by 27 from innovators based in the US and eight in Canada.

Nearly two thirds of entries (64%) came from innovators in

Europe with 112 entries – including the UK – with entries from Spain, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Greece, Switzerland, Ireland, Denmark and Isle of Man. In Africa, 11 entries were received from teams from South Africa, Botswana, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. In Asia, nine entries were received from teams in India, Israel, Singapore, Hong Kong, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. In South America, teams entered from Colombia and Brazil. Four teams from Australia have submitted their innovations to the prize. In addition to entries from the USA and Canada in North America, one entry was received from Mexico. Competing entries in the running for the prize include:

• Wearables – smart glasses to aid memory recollection through storytelling AI and facial recognition; smart gloves to learn from the environment a person is in and help prompt routines; and activity trackers linked to smartphones to support management of daily activities.

• Cognitive interventions –software to train cognitive skills and prevent further memory problems; virtual reality games featuring reminiscing opportunities to help provide useful cues and prompts for people living with dementia; and games to help people with dementia maintain and reduce the speed of decline

Atte Nittylä, CEO of Hoivatilat, said, ‘We will develop a service community in Espoo, a care home in Kuopio and two residential care centres for disabled people in Nokia and Sotkamo. In the design of these new development projects, we paid special attention to environmental standards and energy efficiency. Together we are creating a better society.’ of life skills.

• Technology for the home and physical aids – in-home avatars and AI chat companions; personalised indoor lighting informed by daily activity to help alleviate depression, poor sleep and improve wellbeing; and navigation and walking aids to ensure people are able to safely traverse their environments.

Later this year, 23 teams will be awarded £80,000 Discovery Awards to develop their solutions. From these, five will go on to win £300,000 grants in 2024 to turn ideas into real-world products. Finally, one winner will be awarded the £1m top prize in 2026.

Resource toolkit to support refugee and migrant health

WHO has developed a refugee and migrant health toolkit, a web-based one-stop comprehensive platform of tools and resources, to support the global, regional and country efforts in implementing health and migration-related activities.

Migration and displacement often impact on people’s physical and mental health and wellbeing, especially for those who were forced to flee their homes. It can leave a particular impact on people displaced across borders or within their own country and those in an irregular situation or with vulnerabilities and specific health and protection needs.

Refugees and migrants could face many factors, such as their migratory status; national migration policies; and linguistic, cultural, economic and social barriers that often hinder their access to health services.

It is essential that countries have strong and inclusive health systems equipped with the necessary knowledge and tools to help decision-makers and health personnel meet the health needs and rights of these populations and advance the health and migration agenda.

Dr Santino Severoni, Director of the WHO Health and Migration Programme, said, ‘We developed the toolkit to assist countries in designing, developing and implementing health and migration policies, strategies and services based on evidence and technical soundness. We hope that Member States will use this single-source, operational and user-friendly toolkit in the implementation of health and migration-related activities, including the Global Action Plan (GAP) Promoting the Health of Refugees and Migrants, 2019-2023, and regional action plans with similar goals.’