New Digital Transformation In Adult Social Care Website Launched
A new website designed to fast track the digital transformation of the social care sector was launched this week at the Residential & Home Care Show at ExCeL London.
Digital Social Care is a new dedicated space to provide advice and support to the adult social care sector on technology and data protection. Run by social care providers for social care providers, Digital Social Care’s website launched at Health + Care on 27th June 2019.
Digital Social Care is a partnership project between members of the Care Provider Alliance, Skills for Careand NHS Digital. Funded until March 2021, the project aims to support social care providers with technology, data protection and appropriate information sharing with health and local authority partners.
There are 1.47 million people working in adult social care in England[1], working in approximately 25,000 services. Digital Social Care will be working to better understand the digital maturity of this important sector. This will be done by developing a self-assessment tool for social care employers to measure their organisation’s digital maturity.
As well as supporting the uptake of existing national IT solutions such as the Data Security and Protection Toolkit and NHSmail, the project will develop a set of core requirements to support social care providers in choosing IT suppliers.
Ian Turner, Chairman of the Registered Nursing Home Association, representing the Care Provider Alliance said:
“We are really excited to be working with NHS Digital on this project. We know just how critical it is that social care providers across the country are able to maximise digital and this project and website will provide them with vital information and advice to make that happen.
“What’s also really positive is the fact that all of the work will be done in collaboration with the social care sector, enabling the sector to drive the agenda.”
Pam Garraway, Senior Responsible Officer for the Social Care Programme at NHS Digital said:
“We are excited to support this collaborative work with the social care provider sector. Improving information sharing between the care provider sector, NHS and local authorities has the potential to improve care quality for individuals”.
