Breaking the Budget Barrier: How Remote Care Supports Care Workers
Recent budget cuts have caused a great deal of concern for care workers. GenieConnect® — an invest-to-save ROI care delivery model based on home robotics — offers flexible working and reduces the workload of embattled care workers.
According to a recent report from The Guardian, the government plans to cut £250 million from social care workforce funding in England. The government’s proposed changes have resulted in a significant decrease in the support promised to both the social care workforce and care recipients.
Initially, £1.7 billion was allocated in the “People at the Heart of Care” white paper, but this has been reduced. This includes a decrease in the funding for workforce training and wellbeing, from £500 million to £250 million, and the removal of £300 million earmarked for additional housing and support options. Additionally, there has been a delay in implementing the £2.2 billion cap on care costs while reducing the fair cost of care funding from £1.36 billion to £486 million, as announced in the Autumn Statement.
While this news may be disheartening, it is important to remember that there are ways to adapt and thrive in this changing landscape. GenieConnect® offers one such way, providing a new approach to care that helps providers meet the needs of recipients while reducing costs.
At GenieConnect®, we believe that care providers should have access to the tools and resources they need to provide quality care, no matter their challenges. That’s why we’ve developed an innovative model that puts the needs of both care recipients and providers first. With our invest-to-save approach, we help reduce the demand for care and increase efficiency while maintaining the highest standards of care.
Budgets Don’t Have to Limit Care
According to Skills for Care’s forecast, the UK will require approximately 480,000 additional social care workers by 2035 in order to meet the demand for care services. To compound the problem, over the next decade, it is estimated that up to 430,000 caregivers may choose to retire.
We understand that care providers are facing significant budget constraints, which can limit resource availability to provide high-quality care. Despite these budget constraints, we believe that care providers can still offer high-quality care to recipients. Our GenieConnect® care delivery service is an invest-to-save ROI model that offers flexible working and reduces the demand for care. By automating many tasks, we help providers offer high-quality care while reducing the workload of workers.
Our care delivery service overcomes workforce challenges by offering flexible working options. This means care workers can work remotely, helping reduce the cost of care. By working remotely, care workers save time and money, especially considering the cost of fuel. These savings can be reinvested to provide high-quality care to recipients.
Besides offering flexible working options, our GenieConnect® care delivery service helps to reduce the demand for care. By automating routine tasks, we free up care workers to focus on more important tasks. This reduces their workload and improves the quality of care provided.
Care Providers Face Numerous Challenges
Providing high levels of care takes time and effort, even under the best of circumstances. The recent budget cuts have only made this job harder.
Furthermore, as the population ages, more people require care, increasing the demand for services, while there aren’t enough providers to meet this demand. This results in long waiting lists and increases the pressure on care providers to do more with less.
High staff turnover is another challenge facing care providers. Care workers are often paid low wages and work long hours, leading to burnout. They may also have other responsibilities, such as caring for children or relatives, making working traditional 9-5 hours impractical.
With many care providers limited in the flexible working options they can provide — especially in the face of competition from the major retailers — they struggle to attract and retain skilled care workers, making it difficult to provide the continuity of care essential for building strong relationships with recipients of care.
Remote care offers a solutionhatemote care offers a solution that helps providers overcome these challenges. Through automation (enabling flexible working) remote care alleviates the workload of care workers while maintaining quality of care.
Introduction to GenieConnect®
As care providers face budgetary constraints, GenieConnect® offers a solution that reduces costs while improving quality of care. GenieConnect® implements an invest-to-save ROI care delivery model that enables care providers to deliver remote care, thereby reducing the need for travel and saving money. We help providers manage their workload more efficiently, allowing them to focus on delivering high-quality care to those who need it most. GenieConnect®’s ecosystem is unique in the market in enabling:
- A range of features — including video calling, messaging, and medication reminders — that enable remote care while supporting regular human interactions.
- Flexible working options that help to attract and retain staff.
- Work from home options, reducing the need for travel, saving time and money.
- Increased staff morale and reduced turnover, positively impacting care quality and outcomes.
GenieConnect®’s Invest to Save ROI
Our Invest to Save ROI care delivery model is based on the principle that remote care can be as effective as traditional care. By leveraging technology, providers can deliver care services that are more efficient and cost-effective. Our platform allows care providers to connect with recipients remotely, reducing the need for in-person visits and freeing up time for other tasks — In fact, we can increase care touchpoints by 135% using remote care delivery (a significant cost saving) while improving quality of care.
One of the key benefits of our Invest to Save ROI care delivery model is the flexibility it offers to care providers. Our platform allows care workers to work from anywhere, at any time. This means they can work around their schedules, which helps to reduce stress and improves their work-life balance.
In addition, our platform provides access to a broader pool of care workers, which helps to reduce the demand for individual workers.
Using our platform, care providers can automate many of the tasks that normally require in-person visits. This promotes joined-up care networks, reduces the number of visits required, thereby reducing costs and improving efficiency. In addition, our platform provides access to a range of tools and resources that help care providers manage their workload more effectively. GenieConnect® can achieve 135 welfare checks vs 1 in-person care visit per day.
GenieConnect® Enables Flexible Working
Martin Green, Chief Executive of Care England, stated: “People who receive services suffer because if we can’t make social care an attractive place to develop careers, we will see a reduction in services and the chronic situation many people are in — where they only get a service when in crisis — will get even worse. It will also put extra pressure on the NHS.”
GenieConnect® offers a flexible working model that allows care workers to schedule their work according to availability. This means they can choose to work full-time, part-time, or even on a casual basis. This flexibility is especially important for those with other commitments, such as family or education, as it allows them to balance their work and personal lives.
GenieConnect®’s flexible working model and remote care options offer a win-win solution for care providers facing budget constraints restrictions. Care providers can overcome their workforce challenges by offering flexible working that matches the lifestyles of their workers while continuing to provide high-quality care services to those who need them.
Research undertaken by health and hygiene company ESSITY shows that nearly two-fifths (37%) of carers would like governments and private companies to invest in technology to better support them in their role, while 52% want more training to help them feel better supported.
GenieConnect® Reduces the Demand for Care
The GenieConnect® ecosystem enables discrete care at the point of need. It relies on Genie, a robot designed for the older adult, powered by a companion app (accessed by care workers and the families of care recipients), and the central Care Portal (accessed by care managers). Keeping older adults at home for longer reduces the demand for services, reduces family worries and, most importantly, respects the dignity of care recipients.
GenieConnect® is designed for a home-first approach to care, where the recipient is encouraged to maintain their independence and interdependent on care networks. Supported by GenieConnect®, care recipients become proactively responsible for their health, regain control and are afforded greater choice to meet their needs, particularly considering their home offers the best environment for their recovery.
Remote Care Overcomes Workforce Challenges
Care workers face significant challenges brought on by budget constraints restrictions and a shortage of care professionals. However, remote care offers a solution to these problems.
GenieConnect® is an invest-to-save ROI model that provides flexible working options and reduces the demand for care. By allowing care workers to work remotely, providers can overcome these challenges and ensure that recipients receive the care they need.
Through remote care, care workers can work from anywhere, anytime. This flexibility allows them to balance their work and personal lives, reducing stress and burnout. Moreover, remote care helps reduce the number of hospital admissions, freeing up hospital beds for those who need them most.
By reducing the need for face-to-face care, remote care also helps minimise the risk of infection. This became especially evident during the coronavirus pandemic.
In conclusion, remote care paves the way forward for care workers. By providing flexible working options and reducing the pressure on services, care providers can ensure that recipients receive the care they need while promoting the well-being of care workers.
“Incorporating digital technology into health and social care is crucial for enhancing care quality and safety, while simultaneously cutting down expenses.”
Make GenieConnect® the catalyst for remote care delivery.
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