Plymouth Community Homes Digital Living Lab

Centre for Health Technology
woman sat at table in a kitchen on her mobile phone
The Plymouth Community Homes Digital Living Lab is an innovative, real-world environment where researchers, companies, public organisations and end-users collaborate to co-create, test and refine new digital health technologies with the aim of creating a healthier home environment. Unlike traditional research and development settings, this living lab takes place in an actual, everyday context – in homes or public spaces – and it therefore allows for the observation and evaluation of how people naturally interact with new digital health technologies (DHT) in their daily lives.
The University of Plymouth's Centre for Health Technology has led in the creation of this Living lab, a city-wide partnership which explores the impact of Digital Health Technologies (DHTs) within homes across Plymouth. The living lab enables researchers to work with end users (older adults and health care staff) and stakeholders to explore ideas and investigate their thoughts on design and the different types of technologies they find useful.
The Centre for Health Technology ’s principle aim is to use the living lab to demonstrate the value proposition of DHTs across all health sectors. We hope this innovative environment enables stakeholders to experiment and test disruptive technologies in a safe space.

The benefits of Digital Health Technologies (DHTs)

In areas where real-time transfer of physiological data from wearables to electronic patient records is already happening, there is growing evidence of significant benefits. For example, technologies are being used to support the early diagnosis of conditions such as:
  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Neurological disease
  • Pulmonary disease
As the adoption of wearables, personal devices, and sensors grows, the potential for AI-based technologies to monitor individual patient risk and design intelligent intervention triggers will only expand further.

Examples of DHTs include:

  • Smart devices and environmental sensors - which enable remote monitoring of the home environment, tracking vital physiological signs and activities
  • Alert systems, like alarms for critical events and more complex risk assessments, such as predicting falls or diagnosing dementia
  • VR - which has proven effective in enhancing various physical, mental, and psychosocial health outcomes
  • Care robotics – which have been found to improve the wellbeing of residents.

Safe technology

The project is investigating citizen’s views on technologies, with respect to the impacts on their privacy, concerns about surveillance and requirements for safe and clinical care. Do people want increasing numbers of gadgets or integrated (and NHS validated) systems for remote monitoring, for example? By working on these issues in partnership with end-users, technology developers and health care systems we are better positioned to reach practical solutions. A digital living lab enables stakeholder collaboration from the outset, and citizen feedback throughout the process of co-design, prototyping, piloting and evaluation.
At the centre of the project is Plymouth Community Homes (PCH), the city’s largest social housing landlord with over 16,000 properties housing 35,000 people in Plymouth and its surrounding rural environs.
Living Lab Project Manager, Rachel and Lecturer in Digital Health Dr John Downey introduce the aims and ambitions of the Living Lab at the project launch.

Project team

The project’s core workstream, led by Professor Sheena Asthana and Dr John Downey and with support from Kieran Green , involves collaboration with citizens, clinicians (primary, community and acute), local authority staff (such as those in social care), the VCSE sector and industry to support the co-design, piloting and evaluation of home-based technologies.
The second workstream, led by Ms Martha Lee , looks at the potential for System Transformation to collect, analyse and use data from devices for individual case management, service improvement and population health management. It also explores the barriers and enables (technology, processes, culture, information governance and regulatory) to bringing real-time data together in a central command and control system, applying advanced data analytics to setting triggers for action and ensuring safe clinical responses.
 

Funding and support

The project is funded by global IT firm Cisco, through its ‘Country Digital Acceleration’ initiative and brings the Plymouth partners into a healthcare innovation programme, The Lister Alliance.
The Alliance’s mission is to embed digital technologies seamlessly across the NHS, and it works with NHS Trusts, key partners and academics to create living labs, demonstrating new ways to deliver accessible, efficient and personalised healthcare.