Telecare
Encyclopedia
Telecare is a term given to offering remote care of old and physically less able people, providing the care and reassurance needed to allow them to remain living in their own homes. The use of sensors may be part of a package which can provide support for people with illnesses such as dementia
, or people at risk of falling. In 2005 the UK's Department of Health published Building Telecare in England to coincide with the announcement of a grant to help encourage its take up by local councils with social care responsibilities.
Most telecare mitigates harm by reacting to untoward events and raising a help response quickly. Some telecare, such as safety confirmation
and lifestyle monitoring have a preventive function in that a deterioration in the telecare user's wellbeing can be spotted at an early stage.
Telecare is specifically different from telemedicine
and telehealth
. Telecare refers to the idea of enabling people to remain independent in their own homes by providing person-centred technologies to support the individual or their carers.
In its simplest form, it can refer to a fixed or mobile telephone with a connection to a monitoring centre through which the user can raise an alarm. Technologically more advanced systems use sensors, whereby a range of potential risks can be monitored. These may include falls, as well as environmental changes in the home such as floods, fire and gas leaks. Carers of people with dementia my be alerted if the person leaves the house or other defined area. When a sensor is activated it sends a radio signal to a central unit in the user's home, which then automatically calls a 24-hour monitoring centre where trained operators can take appropriate action, whether it be contacting a local key holder, doctor or the emergency services.
Telecare also comprises standalone telecare which does not send signals to a response centre but supports carers through providing local (in-house) alerts in a person's home to let the carer know when a person requires attention.
The meaning and usage of the term 'telecare' has not yet settled into consistent use. In the UK it is grounded in the social care framework and focuses on the meaning described above. In other countries 'telecare' may be applied to the practice of healthcare at a distance.
Technological advances result in the possibility of promoting independence and for providing care from the social initiative sector, which now contemplates eCare
, and navigation/positioning systems, such as GPS for people with dementia or other cognitive impairments.
It is important to note that 'telecare' is not just a warning system if someone strays from home but is also preventative measure whereby people are brought back and kept in the community through regular communication.
There are now a large range of telecare services available with some of the most well known being the pendant alarm, pill dispenser, telephone prompt service , the movement monitoring and more. All play a role in maintaining people's independence and allowing people to stay in their own homes.
Dementia
Dementia is a serious loss of cognitive ability in a previously unimpaired person, beyond what might be expected from normal aging...
, or people at risk of falling. In 2005 the UK's Department of Health published Building Telecare in England to coincide with the announcement of a grant to help encourage its take up by local councils with social care responsibilities.
Most telecare mitigates harm by reacting to untoward events and raising a help response quickly. Some telecare, such as safety confirmation
Safety Confirmation
Safety Confirmation is a way of determining each day whether someone who lives alone is safe. All the person has to do is to press, before a time agreed with him or her, an 'I am okay' button on a special landline or mobile phone handset that can also be used normally to make calls. The...
and lifestyle monitoring have a preventive function in that a deterioration in the telecare user's wellbeing can be spotted at an early stage.
Telecare is specifically different from telemedicine
Telemedicine
Telemedicine is the use of telecommunication and information technologies in order to provide clinical health care at a distance. It helps eliminate distance barriers and can improve access to medical services that would often not be consistently available in distant rural communities...
and telehealth
Telehealth
Telehealth is the delivery of health-related services and information via telecommunications technologies. Telehealth could be as simple as two health professionals discussing a case over the telephone or as sophisticated as doing robotic surgery between facilities at different ends of the...
. Telecare refers to the idea of enabling people to remain independent in their own homes by providing person-centred technologies to support the individual or their carers.
In its simplest form, it can refer to a fixed or mobile telephone with a connection to a monitoring centre through which the user can raise an alarm. Technologically more advanced systems use sensors, whereby a range of potential risks can be monitored. These may include falls, as well as environmental changes in the home such as floods, fire and gas leaks. Carers of people with dementia my be alerted if the person leaves the house or other defined area. When a sensor is activated it sends a radio signal to a central unit in the user's home, which then automatically calls a 24-hour monitoring centre where trained operators can take appropriate action, whether it be contacting a local key holder, doctor or the emergency services.
Telecare also comprises standalone telecare which does not send signals to a response centre but supports carers through providing local (in-house) alerts in a person's home to let the carer know when a person requires attention.
The meaning and usage of the term 'telecare' has not yet settled into consistent use. In the UK it is grounded in the social care framework and focuses on the meaning described above. In other countries 'telecare' may be applied to the practice of healthcare at a distance.
Technological advances result in the possibility of promoting independence and for providing care from the social initiative sector, which now contemplates eCare
ECARE
ECARE, Spanish-language acronym for Estación Científica Antártica Ruperto Elichiribehety, is a Uruguayan summer station established by the Uruguayan Antarctic Institute on Dec 22nd, 1997 in the Antarctic Peninsula....
, and navigation/positioning systems, such as GPS for people with dementia or other cognitive impairments.
It is important to note that 'telecare' is not just a warning system if someone strays from home but is also preventative measure whereby people are brought back and kept in the community through regular communication.
There are now a large range of telecare services available with some of the most well known being the pendant alarm, pill dispenser, telephone prompt service , the movement monitoring and more. All play a role in maintaining people's independence and allowing people to stay in their own homes.