Easycare Academy Launches Enhanced Digitally Enabled Assessment and Intervention Tool Focused on Supporting Older Adults to Live Better as They Live Longer

GENEVA, February 6, 2018 (Newswire.com) - EasyCare Academy, S.A., today announced that it has launched an enhanced version of its digitally enabled person-centered assessment and intervention tool.  Respond 4.1 is a digitized questionnaire used to engage with older adults to help understand their specific concerns and priorities with respect to their health and well-being.  The input from older adults generates a score indicating a level of independence, and the results are used to create a support and care plan in response.

In the newly released Respond 4.1, the score generated has been expanded to provide an improved understanding of the barriers to health and quality of life. This new WISH scoring methodology focuses on four areas of quality of life: well-being, independence, social engagement, and health.

”For too long we have focused on the healthcare system rather than the individual.  The results have been detrimental both in terms of individual care and health systems sustainability, with real concerns and priorities being neglected and costs escalating,” said Prof. Ian Philp, M.D., CBE, Co-founder and Executive Vice President of R&D and Chief Scientific Officer of EasyCare Academy.  “The EasyCare experience has shown that starting with the perspective of each individual leads to a better understanding of what matters most to each older adult, better-targeted solutions, and more impactful results.”

The WISH score provides a frame of reference that can be followed over time to develop new insights to improve health in the broader context, consistent with the World Health Organization’s definition of health as more than simply the absence of disease, but also, and more importantly, the maintaining of functional ability.  The well-being score is designed to elucidate concerns related to both psychological well-being and physical health.  The independence score assesses the level of support needed in performing activities of daily living.  The social engagement score focuses on understanding impairments that lead to the reduction of social connectedness.  The health score is focused on evidence-based activities that promote health in old age.

Created with a simple user-friendly front-end, which is designed to be accessible by all, Respond 4.1 is supported by a sophisticated back-end that interfaces with various data sources and can be tailored to customers’ requirements and integrated to their existing solutions.  To ensure consistency and high-quality standards, EasyCare Academy exclusively provides the accredited training required for certification of assessors, which must be successfully completed before using Respond.  EasyCare Academy also provides expert advice and support in helping organizations implement Respond.

”Across geographies, cultures and income strata, it is evident that chronological age is not the defining factor for quality of life.  We encounter healthy and vibrant 80-year-olds and functionally challenged 60-year-olds“ said Peter Nicholson, Co-founder, President & CEO of EasyCare Academy.  ”Our understanding of the dimensions of health at the individual level is unmatched in the marketplace, and from it, we are able to deliver highly customized care plans to address each older person’s specific concerns, thereby enabling living better while living longer. “

EasyCare Academy’s person-centered assessment and intervention methodology was created in 1989 by Philp, and used in research studies involving more than 1 million people across nearly 50 countries around the world.  Results show that concentrating on what matters most to older adults leads to improved quality of life while reducing costs.

About EasyCare Academy

Based on 29 years’ research experience in nearly 50 countries, EasyCare Academy is a Swiss-headquartered social impact company focused on supporting personalized care for healthy aging to enable people to live better as they live longer. Our digital platform, validated by more than 90 scientific, peer-reviewed publications, assesses biological, social, psychological and environmental domains to understand older adults’ concerns and generate a personalized response that connects individuals to local resources and solutions. EasyCare Academy works with caregivers – family members, paid caregivers, healthcare professionals and others focused on supporting people as they age – providing best-in-class tools, training and education and empowering them to support the health, independence, and well-being of older adults while lowering the burden on healthcare budgets. More information about EasyCare Academy can be found at www.EasyCareAcademy.com.

CONTACT: Switzerland & US
Christine Perrin
(M) +41 792354739
christine.perrin@easycareacademy.com

Source: EasyCare Academy