The Digitising Social Care programme, a unit within the NHS Transformation Directorate, is making £25 million available to Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) in 2022/23 to support adult social care in digitising.
The investment forms part of the Plan for Digital Health and Care and funding announced in June to support digital adoption in adult social care.
The driver behind the funding, the Digitising Social Care programme, states that “we still have a long way to go in achieving widespread digitisation: only 45 percent of social care providers have any form of digital care records and over 60 percent of care homes are still using internet connections that will not support full digital transformation.”
Some of the areas of focus of the scheme are set to include: increasing the uptake of digital social care records and digital care plans, sensor based falls prevention and detection technologies, and to test other care technologies based on local need to further develop understanding of what works.
In addition to funding, the digital social care team will support the adoption of technologies with participating ICSs, and aim to build an evidence base, develop implementation guidance for care providers and assure supplier solutions.
For ICSs looking to apply to the funding programme, more information will be made available on the Digital Social Care website over the next few weeks.
