Dorset Council pilot AI tech for social care teams

Dorset Council is piloting AI technology from Lilli to monitor recently discharged patients in their own homes and spot early signs of deterioration.

The three-month pilot covers five social care teams who collectively care for 100 people in their homes. It is hoped the AI technology will enable people to live independently at home for longer and delay entry to residential care.

Machine learning is being deployed to analyse a range of data sources such as temperature and motion to help determine an expectation of each individual based on their usual patterns of behaviour.

If a change in pattern indicates a deterioration in health or wellbeing, care teams can be alerted promptly and interventions with healthcare professionals put in place.

The initial pilot estimates indicate that the technology will save 780 hours of occupational therapy time and £250,000 a year.

Cllr Piers Brown, lead member for health at Dorset Council, said: “We are pleased to partner with Lilli on this important pilot. It has the potential to improve provision across Dorset and out partner organisations in the NHS, making sure we are able to support people safely in their own homes and they can be discharged from hospital using the D2A (discharge to assess) pathway to support their ongoing recovery.”

The trial was facilitated through the Independent Future Group (IFG), a coalition of local authorities and professional care associations tasked with addressing the changing needs of care. Formed by Lilli, the IFG is improving the quality of tech-enabled care to support the social care system.

Nick Weston, chief commercial officer for Lilli, added: “We are thrilled with the initial success of this pilot with Dorset – an authority that understands how data-driven, smart technology can help providers make better-informed, more effective decisions about patient needs and resource allocation, improving outcomes and saving lives.

“Using this technology, over-stretched health and social care providers can intervene earlier while monitoring at a distance, reducing the need for hospital admissions or residential care and lowering costs. Tech will not replace care by humans, but it will improve it.”

AI remote monitoring has also been used effectively by Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust – who partnered with Luscii to empower health failure patients to monitor their vitals at home. The AI-powered tech can spot warning signs of deterioration for early intervention by health teams.