PAGE 4 | THE CARER DIGITAL | ISSUE 40
Transforming Social Care Provision with 5G
While care homes brace for the impact of the third national lockdown amid the latest surge in Coronavirus cases, the need to safeguard and provide effective healthcare to vulnerable care home residents remains a priority. Adrian Smith, Health and Social Care Lead at West Midlands 5G (WM5G) - www.wm5g.org.uk - explores how the next generation of internet connectivity could play a crucial role in improving patient safety and transform provision of care to residents. The availability of GPs can be a very literal lifeline to help identify, treat, and manage the often complex and varied needs of care home residents. Over the years, figures from across care homes continue to show that nearly 90% of residents have high support needs. This is defined as requiring care for dementia, confusion, challenging behaviour, dual incontinence, severe hearing/visual impairment, or dependence in mobility.
Balancing the requirements of residents with high support needs while mitigating the risk of Covid-19 has been a challenge which has required rapid changes to our ways of working. The issues we are currently facing – or more importantly how we tackle them – will inevitably shape how we solve some of the industry’s long-term challenges, such as meeting the needs of a growing and aging population. When it comes to health and social care innovation we are at a key point in history, with the industry waking up to the need for smart connected technologies. While it has long been a topic for discussion, 2020 forced the rapid and widescale implementation of digital technology in a bid to keep residents safe and healthy during the pandemic. 5G’s enhanced connectivity capabilities hold the power to unlock Internet of Things (IoT) devices and tools that will allow staff and resources to stretch further, and for quality of care to improve. Of course, it can also help to reduce social isolation and allow residents to stay in touch with their loved ones. Over the next five years, the digital health market is expected to exceed over £384bn, a figure almost equal to that of the global smartphone market. The fifth generation (5G) internet network will support business innovation and new technologies thanks to its faster speeds, greater capacity for more devices and reduced latency (the speed from action to reaction). Healthcare organisations and mobile network operators (MNOs) are partnering to test scenarios where 5G can provide solutions. Projects include the Liverpool 5G Health and Social Care’s digital pharmacy partner, PAMAN, allowing pharmacists to observe patients taking their medications remotely via video/audio link. In Scotland, the NHS is unveiling a new, 5G-powered, Covid-19 testing unit, which will be trialled in six Scottish care homes during a threemonth period, before potentially being deployed across the whole
country. This approach of connecting staff with community-based healthcare teams such as district nurses has provided another layer of monitoring and support to help identify residents at risk. Meanwhile in The West Midlands, in a trial by WM5G, five care homes have been able to receive full GP consultations and assessments remotely. Through connected diagnostics tools GPs are able to view and record clinical information and check residents’ vital signs remotely in the same way as they would face to face. So far the technology has helped safeguard patients during the pandemic while improving access to GPs and opens the possibility of remote ward rounds. Speaking to Marilia Correia, the Manager of Eden House Care Home in Coventry – one of the five participating in the trial – she highlighted how the 5G-enabled diagnostics tool had proven incredibly valuable to resident safety. Residents felt safer in the knowledge they had the best possible access to care, while staff valued having the experience and assistance of GPs at their fingertips. 5G has also made it possible to conduct more complex procedures and assessments remotely, such as an ultrasound scan conducted by a doctor supporting a paramedic miles away. It may sound like fiction, but the reality is that devices such as these are increasingly accessible and ready to be put into practice. Internet connectivity is at the heart of powering this health and care revolution, enabling staff to provide superior patient care whether in person or remotely, save time, resources, and access to expertise. Of course, remote care is never going to be a one size fits all solution. A blended, digital first approach tailored to individual care homes is critical. 5G may seem like a small change to connectivity but will ultimately play a major part in allowing people to live independently at home for longer, stay in better health and remain connected to expert care. Something which will help reduce health inequalities and democratise care.
Veterans’ Home Launches New Book Club To Mark National Storytelling Week A new book club has been launched for people living with dementia at a Surbiton care home. Royal Star & Garter, which provides loving, compassionate care to veterans and their partners living with disability or dementia, began the club in January. They chose Captain Sir Tom Moore’s autobiography Tomorrow Will Be A Good Day as their first read. The book’s publishers thanked the Home for choosing the book to launch the club, and praised the charity for the work it does. The launch coincides with the National Storytelling Week, which runs from 30 January to 6 February, and promotes the importance of storytelling for learning, wellbeing, and enrichment of life. The club is run by Activities Coordinator Dawn Cherrill and resident Maureen, who is living with dementia. Both have experience of working in libraries. Residents at the Home can pop in to the book club, enjoy a hot drink and listen as Dawn or Maureen read extracts. Photos from the book written by Captain Tom, who raised millions of pounds for the NHS last year by walking around his garden, will be placed around the room.
Dawn, who worked in libraries for Hounslow Council for 19 years, said the idea came about when discussing a Christmas present she had received with Maureen: “It was Tomorrow Will Be A Good Day. The book looks at 100-year-old Captain Tom’s life, and how he grew up in Yorkshire on the foothills of the Dales. I told Maureen it is inspiring, and she suggested we start a book club. The book has many photos which we will enlarge to show residents, and because of his military background I think it’s a great choice to launch with. I hope for much chatter in book club, and I’m sure it will trigger lots of memories and lead to lots of reminiscing over tea and biscuits.” Maureen said: “There is a book for everyone. For some they just haven’t found it yet. Book clubs are important to explore different books together.” Dawn added: “It’s wonderful to work together with Maureen, she is a big part of the club and has been really involved. She’s asking other residents to join us and getting great feedback.” In a special message to the charity, publishers Penguin Michael Joseph said: “It has been an honour to work with Captain Sir Tom Moore on the publication of Tomorrow Will Be A Good Day and we are delighted that the veterans at Royal Star & Garter have chosen it as their first book club pick. The brilliant work Royal Star & Garter do in caring for veterans is so vital and so in line with Captain Tom’s ethos. We hope you enjoy the book!” The charity’s Solihull Home holds an audio book club, where residents and staff listen to, and discuss, short stories. The High Wycombe Home also hosts reading activities, including poetry.
Government Funding For Alzheimer’s Research Drops To Three-Year Low
Alzheimer’s Research UK says more funding is needed from government to help find life-changing treatments. Alzheimer’s Research UK calls on the government to urgently deliver on its election promise to double funding for dementia research – as figures published in the Sunday Mirror (Sunday 31 January) reveal a drop in research spend for Alzheimer’s disease. Figures show that government funding for research into Alzheimer’s disease, the most common cause of dementia, peaked in 2017-18 at £49.1 million, but fell to £27.7million in 2018-19, then again dropped to £22million last year. The government currently funds £83 million of dementia research each year, but the UK’s leading dementia research charity says this is not enough, and more research funding is needed to find life-changing treatments for all forms of dementia. With the support of Scott Mitchell, the devoted husband of Dame Barbara Windsor, who died with Alzheimer’s in December 2020, Alzheimer’s Research UK is calling on government to urgently increase its investment in dementia research. Supporter of Alzheimer’s Research UK, Scott Mitchell said: Scott Mitchell and Dame Barbara Windsor“It’s disappointing to see that the government is still not doing more for people affected by dementia, despite the promises made by the Prime Minister to me and Barbara in 2019. While I fully understand that the government has had to prioritise dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, and my heart goes out to every single person affected by the virus, we cannot lose sight of
the need to find life-changing treatments for people affected by dementia. Dementia is one of the country’s leading causes of death, and it will continue to be without greater investment in research. “While we knew nothing could be done to save Barbara from this cruel condition, we were both passionate about making sure action would be taken to save other families from the heartbreak it causes. But I worry we are moving backwards, rather than forwards. Over a year ago the government promised to double its funding for dementia research, yet we have seen no further commitment to this pledge. That’s why I’m asking people to sign Alzheimer’s Research UK’s petition calling on government to deliver on its promise.” Susan Mitchell, Head of Policy at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “Funding for dementia research, and the diseases like Alzheimer’s that cause it, has never been more urgent, particularly due to the devastating impact of COVID-19 on people with dementia. With almost one million people in the UK living with dementia today, yet no treatments to slow, stop or prevent the diseases that cause it, families like Scott’s are being torn apart by this condition. “Two thirds of people living with dementia have Alzheimer’s, so the news that research funding for this disease has dropped will come as a blow. Currently the government funds around £83 million of dementia research a year, but this is simply not enough to be able to overcome one of our greatest medical challenges. We must see a much greater investment across all areas of dementia research, including Alzheimer’s disease, to be able to offer people the hope they deserve."