OKencasa, support for non-professional carers

admin on 27 April 2021

Woman taking care of a dependent elderly man. Retrieved from OKencasa website.

Platform for the support aimed at non-professional carers caring a relative dependent at home. Through the Zaindoo app it offers permanent accompaniment from a care specialist, online training, tools for organizing care tasks, and discounts or advantages in services of physiotherapy, legal advice, home adaptation, etc. The aim is to improve the quality of life of the carers and to make their job easier, that is to say to look after the carers.

OKencasa periodically evaluates the physical, emotional and psychological well-being of the care-givers and, accordingly, offers them a personal plan of improvement and support that can be readjusted in time. The professionals in the service ensure that the caregiver is always accompanied and listened to with regard to the burden of their care tasks.

OKencasa also provides information to public social services so that they can provide better support for families and provide more efficient socio-sanitary care. The application is currently available in Euskera and Spanish.

Characteristics of innovation

Aging, Bank of innovations, Disability, Independent living, Integrated care, Lab, Link with the community, New service, New technological tool, Proximity care, User empowerment

Location

Basque Country

Partners/Funders

Adin Berri, AFAGI (Alzheimer Gipuzkoa), Colegio Oficial de Farmacéuticos de Gipuzkoa, Nazaret, Colegio Oficial de Médicos de Gipuzkoa, Sumisan Ortopedia, Agaer Egge, gunea, Tabakalera, Universidad del País Vasco, Servicios Socio-Sanitarios IMQ Igurco, Asociación Gipuzkoana de diabetis, ASPARGI, MetaPosta, Zenta, OPE consultores, Nagusilan, Asociación de Daño Cerebral Adquirido de Gipuzkoa.

Genesis

The platform was initially launched in 2018 by Iñigo Kortabitarte, as part of a clinical study conducted with 210 Donostia families who were caring for dependent relatives.

Level of implementation

The program is currently used by more than 1,000 non-professional carers from the Basque municipalities of Irun, Errenteria, Pasaia and Ataun, and aims to expand into other municipalities of Euskadi.

The methodology of OKencasa has been assessed by several universities and it has been shown that the accompanying offered to care-givers entails a reduction in the excessive burden of caring activities, avoiding the burn out of care-givers, an increase in self-effectiveness, a reduction in the time spent on care (an average of 9.56 hours a week) and a general improvement in the welfare of the caregiver.

Further information

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DigiContact, remote and immediate social care service available 24h

admin on 13 April 2021

DigiContact worker attending a client. Retrieved from the DigiContact website

Remote and immediate 24h care service for people with long-term care needs: disabled people, elderly people with dependency, people with mental health problems or addictions, etc. The service allows extra respite and support to these people’s non-professional carers, avoiding their saturation, and also offers them support if needed. Users can enrol in the service either individually or through social entities. The service adapts to the needs of each user (for example, calling to remind him of a medication, wake him up in the morning, etc.) according to what is established at the time of contracting the service; and, depending on the needs of the person, DigiContact complements online care with presence visits.

DigiContact works through an app that is very easy to use: only by pressing a button it does the call (with image) to be able to receive remote support and attention. The camera is located in the middle of the screen, making it easier to have a sense of proximity and making it possible for professionals to read the verbal and nonverbal signals of the user.

Professionals working in DigiContact (psychologists, nurses, social workers…) have a specialized training to meet all kinds of needs users can have online.

The DigiContact service has proved especially useful during the lockdown times of the Covid-19 pandemic. It is currently a service only available in Dutch.