Headsets help care home residents see GP without leaving home

A care home has replaced its smartphones and tablets with headsets to allow residents to be seen by a doctor without having to leave their home.

Kendall care home in Cumbria first started using Microsoft’s HoloLens 2 technology in October 2020, to protect residents from Covid by removing the need for residents to leave home to attend GP appointments.

The mixed reality technology, requires a care home worker to a wear headset to visit residents at their bedside and is linked to the Dynamics 365 Remote Assist app which uses Microsoft Teams to send a secure live feed to a GP’s computer screen.

Doctors can speak to patients to make a diagnosis and the headset technology has proved so successful, the care home has replaced smartphones and tablets with headsets.

Geethu Tennison, deputy manager at Kendal Care Home, said: “Because HoloLens 2 enables real-time communications, it has also helped to improve the health and wellbeing of our residents.

"They are still able to see and talk to their nurses and GP, despite many being infirm, unwell and bed-bound. HoloLens 2 is also providing valuable support for our staff and offering peace of mind to residents’ families.”

The care home is operated by Abbey Healthcare, which runs 16 care homes in England and Scotland.

Based in the Lake District, the care home trained its staff to use the headsets by working with doctors, Kendal Integrated Care Community and University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust.

click here for more details or to contact Kendal Care Home