Liverpool aims for 1,000 on telehealth

Liverpool Community Health NHS Trust aims to have 1000 telehealth patients within the next two years.

As part of the ‘More independent’  – or simply ‘Mi’ scheme – piloted across four regions in the UK, the trust aims to support people with long-term conditions.

It recently launched a telehealth service using a box which connects to the TV and the Motiva Personal Healthcare Channel, allowing nurses to send messages, feedback and reminders to patients.

Patients can also use a blood pressure monitor and scales to send data directly to the nurse via a secure network.

The Liverpool programme has enrolled more than 50 patients so far and the trust hopes to get at least 1,000 patients enrolled in the next two years.

Helen Lockett, director of operations and executive nurse, said that there were different tools for people’s different health needs.

“Mi is all about harnessing potential to empower people to live more independently in their own homes and lead healthier lives,” she said.

“From someone who simply needs a little practical health advice, through to people living with complex, long- term conditions who need greater support, Mi provides us with a greater opportunity to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals.”

The Mi service is a partnership between charities, the NHS and supplier organisations and offers a range of telehealth and telecare products.

It is Liverpool’s Delivering Assisted Living Lifestyles At Scale – or DALLAS – project, which received more than £7m in funding from the government.

Earlier this year it launched a smarthouse, based at the Museum of Liverpool, which brings together the tools and gadgets that can support people to live independently.

Products range from talking watches to fall detectors, epilepsy sensors and bath plugs that can stop flooding or tell you if the water is too hot.