“Alexa, Can You

Support People With

Care Needs?”

Mark Allen

Head of Strategic

Commissioning

• Aims

• Method

• Skills

• Users

• Results

• Lessons

• Future

CONTENT

AIMS

• Trial the potential of a consumer

connected device (CCD) to deliver care

outcomes

• Develop & test two care-oriented ‘skills’

• Assess impact on care provision

• Identify pros & cons of CCDs

• Delivered between PA Argenti partnership and

Hampshire County Council

Adults’ Health & Care

• Funded by the LGA

Local Investment Programme

• Select 50 eligible service users

• Supply Amazon Echos

• Some additional devices

• Agree desired user outcomes

• Discuss data & consent

• Curate required skills & functions

• Connect to peripherals

• Repeat visits if needed

• Before & after surveys

METHOD

• Medication reminder skill

• Not required due to new standard

functionality

• My Carer skill

• Back-office

• Remote access to a reminder skill on

each device

• Push messages to whole estate

• Leave messages for on-site carer

• Record messages for next carer

• We will share via LGA for developers

NEW SKILLS

• 70% PD e.g. MS; Cerebral Palsy

• 16% Visual Impairment

• 14% Elderly Frail/Immobile or LD

• 60% Female; 40% Male

• Aged 16 - 93

• All needed Amazon account & Wi-Fi

• No life-critical dependencies on Alexa

• All had access to carer back-up

USERS

RESULTS

• Significant impacts on feelings of

independence/isolation/connectedness

• Reduction in carer breakdown risk

• Just two saw a direct reduction in costs

of care; total value ~£5k p.a.

• 3 in 10 concerned re data privacy

• Only two people said “no thanks”

• All users have kept their devices

• Several have purchased more

• User selection critical; it’s not for all

• Desired outcomes vary widely

• GDPR/data: a surmountable concern

• Set-up time can be considerable

• Some users are high maintenance

• Make or Buy decision is a no brainer

• think ‘librarian’ rather than ‘tech developer’

• Significant external interest plus users

LOVE it!!

LESSONS

• 6.6m smart speakers in UK today

• 29 connected devices in every

domestic home by 2020

• Care support will integrate seamlessly

with user’s lives through CCDs

• No ‘beige-box’ stigma; no kit cost

• Power or Wi-Fi outage = No service

• Mind-set shift from provision to

curation & the service ‘wrap’

FUTURE

• PA report available at: http://www2.paconsulting.com/trialling-consumer-devices-in-adult-social-care.html?_ga=2.103180803.2066979003.1542277666-1049122240.1529502019

• Final evaluation being

undertaken now and report will

be available

• Mark.allen@hants.gov.uk