HMA, The University of Sheffield and Tunstall Healthcare collaborate to develop new mHealth Assist mobile platform for supported living
Jointly funded by Creative England and Tunstall, the innovative mobile technology platform will help people live more independently
Tunstall Healthcare is collaborating with The Centre for Assistive Technology and Connected Healthcare (CATCH) at the University of Sheffield, and HMA Digital Marketing to develop mHealth Assist, an innovative mobile technology platform.
mHealth Assist is being designed to support healthcare management and independent living for people with long-term conditions, providing personalised healthcare information and support that is customised to meet individual needs, developed through researching user needs and understanding current commercial offerings.
The project is being funded through an investment from the Creative England NHS Digital Fund awarded to HMA Digital Marketing. The fund is geared towards creative SMEs which want to take innovative concepts or prototypes into the NHS marketplace.
Early research at CATCH with potential users is defining what functions need to be included so that people can easily access the most-useful support and information. This focuses on the needs of vulnerable people including those living with dementia, visual impairment or needing solutions to resolve communication difficulties.
Developed with the knowledge, expertise and support of Tunstall, HMA Digital Marketing is leading the project to develop a working prototype that demonstrates how the initial concept can be adapted according to need. Initial meetings with user groups and literature reviews are providing a better understanding of what the target audiences require from the latest assisted living technology.
Dr Ceri Batchelder, business development director and HMA’s lead on digital healthcare, said “Creative England’s support and our partnership with Tunstall and CATCH are enabling us to accelerate the development of mHealth Assist and provide new digital approaches to improve quality of care”.
Richard France, centre development ,anager at CATCH, added: “We are delighted to be collaborating with Tunstall Healthcare and HMA Digital Marketing on the development of the mHealth Assist technology platform. This is an exciting partnership where our expertise in researching new technologies to support health and social care complements the innovative digital design ideas at HMA and the commercial development experience of Tunstall.”
And Jim Farmery, director of business investment at Creative England, said: “We introduced the NHS Digital Fund in partnership with NHS England to help improve the health and wellbeing of patients using the very technology we have at our fingertips – mobile technology and app development.
“mHealth Assist is the perfect example of creative and innovative technology that can be developed with the right support. At Creative England we continue to invest in and support creative businesses so we can see more of this fantastic work in the future.”