‘Who Takes Care’ takes care of caregivers!
14-02-2025
For the 'Who Takes Care?' research (SIA RAAK-Publiek), Digital Life, research group at the Centre for Applied Research of the Faculty of DMCI (AUAS), together with consortium partners, built an Intelligent Care Environment for people with incipient dementia. This digital environment supports care professionals.
Data via an app
The Intelligent Care Environment consists of a smart home system that sends signals to the person with dementia to remind them to eat and drink. Sensors can then determine whether a person has eaten or drunk. This data is tracked by the system.
In addition, an app has been created that allows care professionals to view data about their clients. This intervention is particularly intended for care professionals, who are involved in the day-to-day care of clients.
Involvement of informal caregivers
The survey results from the care professionals indicated, that for people with early dementia, the care they need is increasingly lacking. This will only increase in the future due to staff shortages and time constraints among caregivers.
The intention within the consortium is thus to also take a closer look at what the role of the informal carer might be in this regard in a follow-up study.
Innovative healthcare organisations
All consortium partners involved played a valuable role, especially in providing input and feedback on the developed application. These (healthcare) organisations provide essential added value in several respects, both inside and outside the organisation:
1. The consortium partners are innovative organisations at the forefront of developing smart care technology for people with dementia.
2. In addition, they can profile themselves as organisations that proactively respond to care challenges, namely:
- The growing staff shortage in care - The increasing pressure on care professionals - The shift towards more care at home for people with dementia
3. Furthermore, they look ahead to the future of care by:
- Using technology to support care professionals - Anticipating a greater role for informal carers - Working on solutions that enable remote care
All in all, Digital Life is looking forward to the follow-up to this survey, as 'Who Takes Care' is happy to take care of caregivers!