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We’ve had a busy summer at BCL, lots of changes and new projects starting, but as a result we haven’t kept our blog up to date. So, to get everyone up to date on our projects and the more general activity of BCL, we will have to do a few retrospective posts. But, once we have done that, you can expect regular post from the team on all our activities. SO, watch this space! Thanks All at BCL Yes, we have finally finished the new web site! Some time ago we decided to drop using the Joomla in favour of a lighter and speedier content management system. After some research by our software boffins here at BCL, Wordpress was chosen because, in their own words, it is “a state-of-the-art publishing platform with a focus on aesthetics, web standards, and usability” – the boffins agreed! Also, in keeping with the spirit of BCL, Wordpress is free and open source. The site update has taken place at the same time as a rebranding exercise with the express aim of giving us a lighter, more friendly feel; much of this in order to reflect the dynamism of the company. All the content that was under the blog tab on the old site has been transferred to the blog tab here. In the coming months we will be keeping you up to date with what is going on project wise and hopefully informing debate with some interesting insight. STREAM has been in the national news again, this time in the Daily Mail which has run a feature on STREAM Safe and Sound. STREAM Safe and Sound is the next major enhancement of STREAM Personal TV which integrates a set of lifestyle sensors around the home. The service allows relatives, carers and service providers to get a clearer picture of the individual’s lifestyle and can show trends over time.  Steve Fleming Steve Fleming, Chair of the Digital 20/20 Public Sector Special Interest Group, looks at technology’s role within public service transformation, and the significant economic opportunity it presents for the Yorkshire and Humber region. ‘Technology shouldn’t just automate existing processes, it should change them.’ There are two sets of things to consider when looking at public sector transformation: How and What. The How involves changing the model to move away from a management view towards a customer view, so that services are focused on citizens. The key question is, can broadband technology really change the way that public services are delivered, and how the citizen engages with those services, or are we just using technology to automate bits of existing processes, rather than transforming them in the real sense of the word? The What involves a wide range of important issues, such as health, education, competitiveness, worklessness and inclusion. These issues are all big areas of public expenditure, so it’s important to ask the question, is it effective enough? In particular, I’m interested in how we can connect. The Digital Inclusion agenda is an important one for Hull, and one in which we are engaged nationally, with the DC10plus. The STREAM Personal TV has received a significant boost this week with the announcement that the service is one of three UK flagship projects for Inclusive eGovernment. STREAM will now represent the UK at the European Ministerial eInclusion Conference, 30 November – 2 December 2008 in Vienna.
The European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL) has announced that the city of Hull is to join its ranks in the next wave. Hull’s Service Transformation Laboratory will be one of more than 50 Living Labs, spread across Europe. Living Labs are open innovation platforms which provide research, development, innovation and market validation services in real-life environments. Living Labs share knowledge, services and even developments. Broadband Capital is one of Hull City Council’s strategic partners in the Living Lab. By working together, the Council and Broadband Capital hope to raise the profile of the innovation taking place in the city and act as a route for bringing best practice into the city. STREAM’s mobile service for NHS Choices received its second award of the year tonight when the NHS Choices Humber team picked a BT eHealth Insider Award for best use of ICT in patient and citizen engagement. The NHS Choices Sexual Health Initiative gave young people in Hull, the East Riding of Yorkshire, and North and North East Lincolnshire access to sexual health information and a location-sensitive service directory through their mobiles. The service was promoted through text and Bluetooth messaging, and street champions provided by the Choices team. The project was devised by NHS Choices and the Humber Primary Care Trusts, with Broadband Capital providing the technical solution and animations.
At Broadband Capital, we recognized at an early stage the significant impact that this delivery platform would eventually have, basically allowing the public and private sector to communicate with their clients and target audience in a personalized and targeted manner. We have been working with emerging technologies over the last 2 years to find ways to better serve content to this new media platform, and have developed a number of concept applications catering for a wide user audience. By taking advantage of technologies such as Adobe Flash Lite, we are able to create and deploy applications that can access internet-based technologies and provide access to rich media content, such as:
One of the major issues I have to deal with in my job is that I spend a lot of time giving patients basic, generic information, rather than actually treating them. Therefore, a service that can provide that information in video format, which patients can watch at home, whenever they choose, and as many times as they wish, would be invaluable. And, of course, the same information could be shown in hospital OT unit waiting rooms if the service was available there. So what sort of information do I want my patients to have? To start with, how to find the OT department at their local hospital, and what an OT session will be like. Patients are often anxious about these things, so a video showing things such as a splint being made, a kitchen assessment/practice, a dressing practice, or any example relevant to the service, would help to put them at ease, and in turn make our job less stressful. Another area of potential confusion for patients is the difference between hospital, community and social services – people sometimes confuse us with occupational health! There’s a wide range of information that OTs need to disseminate: Continue reading An Occupational Therapist Talks About the STREAM Services →
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Registered Office: 156 Copandale Rd, Beverley, Kingston Upon Hull, United Kingdom, HU17 7BW |
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As mobile phone technology moves on, so have the capabilities of the devices we use on a daily basis. Most handsets on the market can now get emails, access the internet and run & store media rich content, such as video, music and images.
‘Stream will provide an assistant who doesn’t get overloaded, always says the right thing, and is on duty 24/7.’
NHS Choices and Hull Primary Care Trust have been nominated for a BT E-Health Insider Award for the sexual health pilot undertaken earlier this year. The Awards are dedicated to highlighting and rewarding the hard work and bright ideas of information and communications technology professionals in UK healthcare. The project has been shortlisted in the patient and citizen involvement category. The winner will be announced on the 17th of November 2008.