Telecare to support reablement in delaying a need for long‐term homecare

It is now accepted that a course of personalised, well‐planned support services for up to six weeks can prevent or delay the need for an older person to receive long‐term homecare and other labour‐intensive community services. Telecare can play an important role in managing the risks, both during the reablement period, and in the months following service delivery, irrespective of whether the individual needs long‐term homecare. This paper describes an innovative approach to provision that has been adopted in the Vale of Glamorgan, in which the service has been designed and is delivered by the Reablement Team. It is planned to expand the number of people being offered the service in the future by stratifying them using a new algorithm, and then support them subsequently with a pro‐active telephone calling service called CATRIN.