Making care smarter using predictive analytics
As more elderly and disabled individuals aim to live independently, monitoring apps designed for frail adults have become increasingly popular. These apps can also help family and caregivers distinguish between short-term problems and long-term declines. Falls, in particular, can be costly. The UK’s NHS estimates that unaddressed fall hazards in the home cost around £435 million per year, with fragility fractures costing £4.4 billion per year. Entrepreneurs have responded to the need for these apps by creating systems that can collect information for a better understanding of the individual’s daily functioning and factors that might be affecting it.
MySense, a predictive wellbeing analytics company, is one of these entrepreneurs. The founder and CEO, Lucie Glenday, created MySense after her sister was diagnosed with a rare form of motor neurone disease and died at age 23. She struggled to understand her sister’s symptoms and wanted to help others with complex needs. MySense uses eight devices, the majority of which are passive sensors, that pick up signs of daily activities. This data is then analysed to create a personalised digital portrait of what normal looks like for each person. The company’s sensors pick up on context around activity rather than the activity itself. MySense has been adopted by several NHS hospitals, including South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust, Leicestershire County Council, and Care Hub. The technology has reduced unplanned hospital admissions by 50% and moved 25% of people out of pathways for patients with fewer than 1,000 days to live.
Digital Social Care has created the Adult Social Care Technology Fund, which will provide funding for technology that increases care quality and safety, reduces avoidable hospital admissions, and increases support for independent living. AVERio, another initiative focused on falls prevention, has created non-intrusive sensors that detect falls using 4D radar technology to scan a room constantly. EIT Health, a European Union initiative, has also created a monitoring device, FFalls Predictor, which aims to provide early detection and prevention of falls.
