Cambridgeshire County Council

Technology Enabled Care Services (TECS) is part of Prevention and Early Intervention within Cambridgeshire County Council and sits alongside, Reablement, Enhanced Response, Adult Early Help, Specialist Sensory Services and Occupational Therapy. These services serve to promote the well-being of citizens by preventing, delaying or reducing the need for formal community or acute care, whilst also supporting informal carers.

Adopting a person-centred approach, the service utilises technology to help meet people’s individual needs, whilst simultaneously preventing people’s health and care needs from limiting their abilities to live their lives in the ways that they wish, enabling people to remain independent within their communities for longer. This can have great benefits for both the service user and their families, alongside having great benefits for social care and health sectors.

TEC is a less restrictive option than having a formal care package and can facilitate new or existing skills. TECS provides a range of technological devices to support people and their carers to manage risks and enhance their independence. The equipment provided by TECS ranges from simple pill reminders for people who need prompting to take medication to sophisticated detectors, sensors, smart devices and trackers. Moreover, the TECs team can also provide guidance, training and advice to citizens and professionals.

In October 2020 TECS launched as a lifeline service, providing support 24hours through a lifeline button, to work towards being more proactive in preventing the escalation of needs within the community. Cambridgeshire County Council provide a funded trial for 6 weeks of the service then the person can carry the cost on. This is a great way to support people to remain independent and introduce TEC into their lives.