Do you use telecare equipment? Opinions wanted

[Matt Carers UK]

Does the person you care for use telecare equipment at home? Telecare includes personal alarms, household sensors, and falls detectors.

If you have experience of this equipment, researchers from the Universities of Leeds and Oxford would like to hear from you. A number of telephone-based group-interviews will take place in July / August 2012. They are hoping to attract between 6 and 8 carers to each session, to engage in discussion about experiences with telecare. They will offer a gift of £20 to each carer who takes part.

The study is about how people in need of care and their carers make use of telecare equipment, what the issues are, how it helps, and what difficulties it presents. If you think you can talk about these experiences, please contact the Leeds University administrative team on:

Tel: 0113 343 5003
Email: CIRCLEadmin@leeds.ac.uk

Carers UK is not involved in this research but we have a good research relationship with the University of Leeds, and we're interested in how telecare can support carers, so that's why we're posting about this project.

Thanks

Matt

[Scally]

Just bought my son an iPhone with his personal budget so he can become more independent, does that qualify? He likes the satnav/ navigation functions, the diary, internet access, and lots more apps: not bad for just over £1 a day. I think the future of telecare is seamless merging with mainstream IT equipment and services, not divergence into a disabled/caring ghetto, but I may be wrong.

[Scally]

Actually the "todays weather" has proven to be one of the most popular functions of the iPhone, because my son can now decide what clothing to wear when he heads off to college or on one of his adventures, sure in the knowledge that he is a lot less likely to be soaked by an unexpected change in the weather. Its all about enhancing independence, isnt it, and it saves me having to look it up for him.