Research reveals people’s top nine priorities for TEC
A study examining what people really want from technology-enabled care (TEC) services and devices has identified the nine things they value most but do not always get.
Social policy researcher Dr Sarah Alden examined over 100 sources of evidence and conducted nearly 50 interviews and focus groups with people, families, and unpaid carers, exploring the different ways they use technology to support their lives.
The research was commissioned by the TEC Action Alliance, a group of around 30 care organisations including the Local Government Association, Care England, Homecare Association, and the TEC Services Association (TSA). Its aim is to put the voice of people, families, and unpaid carers centre stage when TEC services and solutions are developed.
The alliance commissioned the research for its latest report, ‘Implementing TEC so we can all live gloriously ordinary lives’, because it states that most previous studies in this area include views from care staff and care organisations, rather than people who draw on care and support themselves.
Alyson Scurfield, CEO of TEC Services Association (TSA) and the co-chair of the TEC Action Alliance, said: “Over two million people in the UK already use technology enabled care but there is an opportunity to support many more people to live happily and independently at home.
“We’ll never realise this potential if we don’t ask people what they want from digital care, and then design services and solutions around these ambitions – rather than assuming we know what they want.”
The research showed that people want nine main things from TEC:
- Awareness: To know more about the ways in which technology can meet their needs
- Independence: Devices and systems that support them to do more for themselves
- Control: To maintain control over care technology, wherever possible
- Reassurance: Peace of mind for themselves and their families through connected technology
- Seamlessness: Technology that is joined-up and compatible with familiar devices
- Personalisation: Technology to be tailored to their needs and offer them genuine choice
- Equal decision-making: A say in the design and functionality of their care technology
- Support: Help, advice, and training if they struggle to access or adopt technology
- Privacy and security: Reassurance around online safety and autonomy over their data
The TEC Action Alliance is calling on all local authority social care commissioners and housing providers, whenever they procure TEC contracts, to ensure suppliers respond to the nine ‘What people want from TEC’ principles in their bids.
Additionally, the report identifies the need for a common language to describe all types of TEC. Currently, commissioners, service providers, and suppliers use different terms, often with technical phrases. Replacing this with a set of easy-to-understand definitions, recognised and used by everyone, would support more people, families, and health and social care professionals to understand and find suitable digital care, the alliance underlines.
The TEC Action Alliance further highlights a missed opportunity around digital care when it comes to people with lower-level needs who are not yet on their council’s radar. The report recommends raising awareness of TEC among NHS primary care and community services, so GPs, pharmacists, and physiotherapists can signpost people, early on, to TEC services, so they can self-manage their own health and delay the need for more intensive care and support.
Likewise, the TEC Action Alliance is calling for wider use of quality assurance schemes so people and families can get reassurance that they are purchasing reliable, safe TEC. In addition, the report makes the case for a common TEC evaluation framework so the TEC sector can create a consistent body of evidence about the benefits it delivers.
Clenton Farquharson CBE, Chair of Think Local Act Personal (TLAP) and the co-chair of the TEC Action Alliance, commented: “Organisations providing TEC services or manufacturing devices must re-focus on people, their families and unpaid carers. This means co-producing TEC, so it’s shaped by individuals.
“It also means ensuring TEC is easy to use and seamless, providing support so people feel confident using it. Those basic principles must be followed, right across the sector, so people can live technology-enabled lives.”
Download the report for free here.
Previous research suggested that personal alarms, a type of TEC device, could help save the NHS over £200 million in ambulance- and falls-related costs.