Connected Health Care team shares project research at REWIRED 2022

Researchers from The Connected Health Care team presented at the Digital Health REWIRED Conference in London on 15 March 2022.

REWIRED has been reimagined as the UK event to reconnect the diverse digital health community. The conference brought together national leaders from health and technology industries to discuss how digitalisation can be harnessed for service improvement and large-scale digital transformation.

Health and care professionals were able to network, collaborate and learn in person during two days of educational conference sessions, exhibitions and meetings, all focused on sharing best practice and innovation.

The Connected Health Care team showcased the Unpaid Carers Study on the Best Practice Stage at this year’s event.

The study is exploring if mobile technology can help to access and amplify the voices of unpaid carers, an issue that is particularly prevalent in Cornwall.

According to the 2011 census, there are 63,000 unpaid carers in Cornwall which equates to 12% of the residents. Additionally, over 40% of the population are considered to live in a rural area. Due to Cornwall's rurality and its small population which lives across a large landmass, it does not have a digital market to produce eHealth products and services.

Cornwall's aging population exceeds the national average - 24% over 65 compared to 18% for the UK in 2015. With the knowledge that older adults are more susceptible to ill health, poor transport links, and the ever-increasing pressure on health and social care services, Cornwall’s health and social care commissioners face significant challenges to secure cost effective, accessible, and user-friendly solutions to improve healthcare access to those in the county.

Research Fellow Gwynedd Williams, who spoke at the event, said that REWIRED provided a valuable opportunity to engage with leading members of the health and technology industries.

Gwynedd told us, “This was a fantastic opportunity to showcase the Connected Healthcare Project and highlight some of the early findings from the Unpaid Carers research. We’re excited to draw on the experiences from the conference as we take our project forward in the coming months.”

Learn more about the Unpaid Carers Study