UKITA Chair launches online care platform

 UKITA Chair Helen Brewster is behind a Kickstarter campaign to raise £18,000 to launch an online platform to help carers plan, communicate and share the care of an unwell loved one. The innovative software solution has been developed to reduce the stress, anxiety, fatigue and geographical & social isolation when caring for someone.

NHS England issuing their ‘5 year look forward’, have identified an £8 billion short fall. Now a Coventry-based social enterprise thinks it may be able to help put a big dent in that. Nics Legacy are developing an online platform to help patients and carers around the country link themselves into a local, non-professional care network.

The platform will help carers and health professional plan, communicate and share the day to day care of a friend or loved one, whether it’s coordinating a visit or doing a simple task such as picking up some milk from the shop.

The Nic’s Legacy campaign has been launched by Coventrian Jamie Rogers and business partner Helen Brewster and has enlisted the help of Coventry University and its Health Design and Technology Institute – but it’s now looking for a helping hand from the public.

Jamie, who lost his wife Nic to cancer in 2008, came up with the idea of an informal online care network based on his own experiences caring for her during her illness.

Despite Jamie recently speaking about his Nicks  at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham, where he took part in a Q&A session with Cabinet Minister Esther McVey,and numerous meetings with health and social care professionals who back the plan, the duo have been unable to raise the £18000 to run a pilot project. So are now looking to the public crowd fund it.

Jamie, who is now writing a book about ‘Nic’s Legacy’, said:

“The NHS report ‘Five Year Forward View’ says that there is a need to co-ordinate Health ,Social Care and Carers, we are already trying to achieve this with our software. Reducing the amount of carers that become ill because of caring for someone is our priority.”

Helen Brewster, who was also a close friend of Nic’s, said:

“85% of carers say that caring for someone has a negative impact on their own health, carers provide approximately £119 bn of support to the UK; why has it taken this long for them to be recognised and offered some form of practical help?.”

To find out more about the Kickstarter campaign and to donate, please visit its page at:

www.kickstarter.com/projects/1563808388/nics-legacy-innovative-carers-software-platform

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For further information, please contact Jamie Rogers or Helen Brewster

Jamie@nicslegacy.org.uk

Helen@nicslegacy.org.uk