The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has awarded over £5.4m to nine research projects aiming to transform the sector through technology.
Announced on Tuesday morning, the £5,444,562 funding package has been allocated through the NIHR’s Research Programme for Social Care (RPSC), supporting institutions across England, Scotland and Wales.
The projects are expected to run for between 18 months and two years.
Researchers were invited to submit collaborative proposals focusing on digital tools in social care, including AI and smart devices designed to improve outcomes for both adults and children.
A particular emphasis was placed on studies exploring barriers to adoption, addressing inequalities in access and testing technologies in settings where they are currently underused.
Among the funded work is research into virtual reality training for carers supporting people with severe mental illness and studies examining whether low-cost smart home devices could help people living with dementia.
Other projects will look at how councils can use digital tools to help older people leave hospital quicker, as well as whether devices such as voice assistants and video doorbells can increase independence for disabled adults.
Professor Mike Lewis, scientific director for innovation at NIHR, said: ‘The NIHR is fully committed to using digital innovations to improve the delivery of social care in the UK.
‘This funding – which is aligned with the government’s People at the Heart of Care vision, as well as its mission to move provision of care out of hospitals and into the the community – will help us build evidence on how digital tools can transform social care and improve lives.’
The full list of funded projects includes:
- Embedding Technology in Care Homes led by the University of Glasgow
- Socially Connected to SmartCare at Home and two further projects at Cardiff University
- Turn Down the Noise at the University of Worcester
- Building Effective Digital Post-Hospital Discharge and Reablement Services at the University of Stirling
- Virtual Reality Assisted Communication Training at King’s College London
- Co-evolving Proactive Telecare at the University of Oxford
- Leveraging Generative AI for people with learning disabilities at Manchester Metropolitan University
Professor Martin Knapp, director of the NIHR research programme for social care, hailed the funding announcement as ‘really exciting’ and ‘important’ for the sector.
He added: ‘By utilising the power of AI, virtual reality, smart home technologies and other tech, these projects offer real hope for supporting independent living and autonomy, and improving people’s lives by raising standards of care and support within their communities.’
Image: James Yarema/UnSplash
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