By Alexander Muir
Researchers at the University of Strathclyde are currently involved in a ground-breaking development in medical technology worth £37 million.
In partnership with Innovate UK and the Scottish Government, Strathclyde researchers are working on the project ‘Demonstrated Assisted Living Lifestyle at Scale’.
Also known as the ‘dallas’ project, it aims to positively manipulate our global dependency on technology to effectively promote independence in maintaining personal wellbeing.
Innovate UK aim to collaborate with multiple partner agencies to promote a vast range of cutting-edge technologies.
These will include interactive, person-centred digitals portals, telecare, electronic personal health records and mobile applications to give people the freedom to maintain their personal health.
Dr Marilyn Lennon, of the University of Strathclyde’s Faculty of Science, said: “There is a lot of excitement right now about the way mainstream technologies like smartphones and wearables can help us to more independently maintain a healthy lifestyle.”
Academics have isolated he key challenges with the large-scale implementation of the project, and mainly are asking the question, is the UK healthcare system ready for this level of unprecedented digital development? Does the NHS currently have the foundation to support a technological shift of this magnitude?
Approximately 72% of the UK population has a smartphone, and there are currently over 50,000 health apps available on iPhone and Androids, showing great potential for ventures in personal health technology in the UK.
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