“INDEPENDENT - ICT Enabled Service Integration for Independent Living”

Organisations from the SEN@ER network including Unitary Authority, Kingston upon Hull City Council and University of Hull, Institute of TeleHealth and Tunstall Healthcare (UK) Limited from Yorkshire and empirica from North Rhine-Westphalia have submitted a proposal to the CIP ICT PSP Pilot programme addressed to objective identifier: 1.3 ICT for ageing well / independent living.
The INDEPENDENT project will define, deliver and pilot a digital infrastructure supporting coordinated cross-sector delivery of timely support to prevent older people from slipping out of safe independent living, maintaining quality of life. The infrastructure enables support services to overcome limitations of sectoral telehealth and telecare and empowers informal carers and the voluntary / third sector to participate in delivery of support, thus radically improving efficiency. ICT use is extended from the high needs end to a stage where not care but preventative support is needed. "People" services for Daily Living and Activation (DALS) and Continued Wellness (CWS) break open current ‘silos' in service delivery to cross-sectoral cooperation and participation of family and voluntary staff. The architecture recognises that integration of consumer and other widely available devices must be achieved and open interface standards adopted.
The innovative new services will be piloted at six sites across the Europe. Users are to be older people living independently with light to severe care or support needs, care professionals, informal carers and voluntary helpers / charity workers. Interested adopters in the public sector will be presented with guidance for uptake and evidence of all intended impacts.

The project brings together 20 organisations across 6 Member States representing all major stakeholders in the "value chain" of support to older people, from public authorities and social and health service providers to global industry players and specialist SMEs. Authorities are represented on dedicated advisory board, as are user groups at European level. Philips and Tunstall as the major players in their respective fields are very well positioned to fully exploit the results, bringing INDEPENDENT services within the reach of all EU citizens.