Carify

There are approximately 650,000 individuals living with dementia in the UK who are cared for by their loving family members, 24/7, 365 days, no breaks. These caregivers, heroes, take on one of the most demanding undertakings of a lifetime, mentally and physically, and Carify is here to support and enable them throughout their journey.
Holistic
STUDENTS INVOLVED
Tarik Helmy
ABOUT
Independent project
Lightening Your Load
Carify is an education and support service that enables dementia family primary carers to become the best carers they can be by lightening the load of care on them as much as possible. Carify equips carers with the key information and tools they need post-diagnosis and reduces the logistical and admin effort required throughout the care journey. The service has three components; The Camp, The Diary and The Tribe.
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The biggest health crisis of our lifetime
As The Guardian puts it, Dementia is the leading cause of death in England and Wales. There are approximately 850,000 people living with dementia today, costing the economy £26Bn. The number of people with dementia is expected to grow to 2 million by 2050. This horrible disease robs families from their loved ones twice, once when they are living with it and then when they leave our world. The majority of dementia patients are cared for at home by members of their families, who are not adequately enabled or equipped for such a significant undertaking, which leads to them suffering from depression, anxiety and isolation. While there is great effort to help slow the disease progression, there is not enough focus on enabling the family carers especially in the following key problem areas: 1. The unrealistic expectation of individuals to become trained professional carers overnight by reading 100s of pages of information online, while only spending a maximum of an hour with a doctor and a Post Diagnosis Nurse. 2. Not getting the best out of the precious interactions with doctors because carers are not equipped with the right information at the right time 3. They suddenly become coordinators between several health and social care entities, in addition to non-profit and private care services providers, experiencing all the disconnections and gaps between those entities.

The Camp

A two-day course where you can learn more about your loved one's condition and key aspects of providing care to a person who is living with dementia. The Camp is: Local: We appreciate that where you live makes a difference in the support that you can get from the adult social services as well as other dementia friendly services around you. Specific: While there are many common symptoms and care needs across the various conditions that cause dementia (e.g. Alzheimer's, LBD, etc.) there are also some specific variations that carers need to be aware about. We promise to do our best to run camp days that focus on specific conditions based on the attendees' needs. Expert: Experienced family carers and care professionals deliver our camps. We do our best to find carers who are willing to share their first-hand experiences, tips and learnings from caring for a loved one with a similar condition in your local area.

The Diary

An app that enables you to record the developments in your loved one's condition, how they feel, vital signs, medication administration and observations about their behaviour. This way you can see the changes over time. The Diary is: Effortless: just talk to it and it will do the magic. You can also take pictures or videos during the day if there is something particular that you think should be shared with your doctors or other professionals. Smart: The Diary uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to transform your voice-based observations into structured themes and diary entries that you can then edit and refine if needed. You can connect The Diary with smart devices such as smart watches and blood pressure readers. Securely Shareable: share your observations with doctors and other professionals you interact with while caring for a loved one. You have full control over the information and can share as little or as much as you want.
The Tribe
A digital assistant that enables you to schedule, manage and delegate care related activities between different individuals and communicate with them more effectively. The Tribe is: Everyone: Your Tribe is a closed group that can include anyone who is helping you care for your loved one: family members, professional helpers, physiotherapists, occupational therapists or volunteering neighbours. Synchronised: The Tribe has a shared calendar that your group can access and see who is doing what and when, according to visibility rules that you can set/change. You can create and customise care shifts (day/night), care tasks (e.g. bath, meal prep, doctor appointment, physio appointment) and assign them to your tribe members in real time. Wise: Once the tasks and routines are laid out for the tribe, they will start appreciating how demanding this undertaking is.
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students involved on the project

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