21st Century Healthcare - Hull leads the way in Telehealth

Amidst concerns that the NHS is not making enough use of IT (Kings Fund Health Think Tank October 2008), a cutting edge health delivery system developed in Hull is providing a platform to dramatically improve patient care whilst delivering substantial cost savings.

Hull City Council, working with the local NHS and Primary Care Trust (PCT) and other key partners from across the city, has launched STREAM personal TV, which provides vulnerable older people with access to locally relevant and personalised information, online services and communications through their television.

 

Each individual receives a council-supplied, digital set top box that gives them access to the Freeview channels. They also get a broadband connection that plugs into the set top box to give them access to local programmes and services on demand, and a wireless keyboard.

 

Steve Fleming, Group Manager Knowledge Economy at Hull City Council said: “STREAM offers users information and advice instantly that would otherwise be difficult to access. In many cases this can have a direct impact upon their well being – as well as providing a direct link to their local community.”

 

The project has recently agreed a key syndication deal with the NHS to deliver all of the NHS Choices website video content to STREAM users, providing a huge amount of healthcare advice from medical experts.

 

The agreement has its roots in the close relationship the project has built up with the NHS and PCT locally and with the voluntary sector, all having collaborated with healthcare staff throughout the city to produce a considerable amount of local, health-related programming.

 

STREAM Personal TV uses broadband to deliver information and services to users. But as well as broadcasting into the home, this same broadband connection can be used to transmit data back to service providers.

 

STREAM Safe and Sound is an enhancement of the STREAM Personal TV service that provides movement, door and temperature sensors, enabling vulnerable people to live independently in their own home for longer.

 

Unlike traditional monitoring systems, Safe and Sound is always on. At any time, relatives, carers and service providers can find out what is happening to an individual in their own home.

 

In August this year the STREAM project won the award for IT Project Innovation, at the Local Government Good Communications Awards 2008. The award was given in recognition of Hull team’s achievement to improve communication with residents. The judges, in awarding first place to Hull, said of the project that it: “lays a foundation for future delivery of services from both the Local Authority and their chosen partners.”

 

Steve commented. “We feel STREAM has huge potential to add to the way services are delivered, but more than that provides a model of how cutting edge technology, partnership and innovation can be used to improve the lives of everyday people.

 

“At the heart of this is the personalisation of services for citizens. Because Stream is a ‘learning’ system it offers the opportunity to plan and commission services that are more effective for the citizen and more efficient for service providers. But this is also a starting point for better and more effective engagement with citizens across other aspects of their land.”

 

Commenting on the initiative, John Holmes, Chief Executive of Hull Forward, the city's Economic Development Company, said: "Hull has a flourishing and extremely innovative Healthcare Technologies sector, and Stream TV is a good example of our key strengths in areas such as Telehealth, Advanced Woundcare and Medical Devices and Diagnostics.  Working alongside world leading companies who have operations in Hull, such as Smith and Nephew, Seven Seas and Reckitt Benckiser, as well as engagement with our SME base, Hull Forward will capitalise on the city's strengths to improve its health and provide a driving force for the local economy."

 

This has been supported by key initiatives put in place across to the city to provide the infrastructure, support and funding for the healthcare sector and its businesses to flourish. Hull is also working with partners in the national DC10 Group, the group of Digital Challenge national finalists funded by the Department of Communities & Local Government, on how these new ways of supporting Living can contribute to tackling the national issue of an ageing population and promote digital inclusion amongst the elderly and the vulnerable.

To find out more about the Stream Project – visit: www.streamonline.co.uk or www.hull.co.uk/healthcare