Putting people at the heart of technology enabled care (TEC)

Guest blog by Alyson Scurfield, Chief Executive at TSA

With so much innovation around technology enabled care (TEC) in recent years, it’s easy for conversations to focus on systems, sensors and solutions. This progress is incredibly exciting and should be celebrated – but when we talk only about kit, we risk overlooking the real story. At its heart, TEC is about people, and the difference it makes to their everyday lives.

That’s why TSA, the national advisory body for TEC, has launched the Everyday TEC campaign, designed to shift the narrative around our sector. TEC is not just about innovative technology; it’s about how that technology supports over two million people across the UK to live the lives they want.

Our campaign was informed by social policy researcher, Dr Sarah Alden, who found that families and unpaid carers often struggle to understand what TEC is and how it can help them. The language we use as a sector can be overly technical, filled with jargon and images of devices and equipment. The result is a lack of awareness among the very people TEC is designed to support.

To change this, we have created a simple description for TEC: “The everyday help we need to enjoy the lives we want.” This is underpinned by three clear messages that describe its impact: TEC helps people stay In Control, In Touch, Safe and Well.

The Everyday TEC campaign centres on three characters: Keith, a keen gardener; Nahira who hosts a knit and natter group, and Nathan, a committed football fan. We learn how TEC supports each of them to live well at home, doing the things they love, in their local communities.

TSA has produced a set of free, ready-to-use resources – including videos, posters, social media assets and a language guide – all centred on the difference TEC makes in daily life. These are available for any organisation to adopt, adapt and share, including for commercial purposes.

By uniting around a shared narrative, we can raise awareness, build understanding and ultimately increase uptake of technology enabled care. That means more people supported to thrive, not just survive, and more families reassured that their loved ones are safe and well.

Let’s tell the story of TEC not through kit, but through the people whose lives it transforms.

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