Care Networx has announced the launch of Share2Care, a new consumer-led carer app that helps unpaid carers stay organised, connected and prepared.
Developed with carers and families, the app enables users to manage everyday caring responsibilities, collaborate with their circle of care and, through its contingency planning capability, securely submit a digital contingency plan into the NHS patient record when required. Share2Care supports key NHS priorities, including analogue to digital transformation, hospital to community care and improved interoperability.
The app was commissioned by NHS West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board to support delivery of the NHS Long Term Plan commitment to improve carer contingency planning. The Long Term Plan sets out an ambition for up to 100,000 carers to benefit from contingency planning conversations, with their plans included within Summary Care Records so healthcare professionals know when and how to call those plans into action when they are needed.
Over the past two years, Care Networx has worked closely with West Yorkshire NHS Integrated Care Board to meet the clinical, information governance and interoperability requirements needed to deliver a secure, digitally enabled contingency planning solution within a single, all-in-one carer app, creating a scalable model that could support future adoption by other NHS regions.
Propel Healthtech Alumni: Care Networx
Care Networx has also been supported through Propel Healthtech, the healthtech accelerator programme delivered by Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber and partners.
Through the programme, Care Networx has received tailored support designed to help healthtech innovators navigate the complexities of the NHS, strengthen their proposition and accelerate the adoption of innovative solutions across health and care.
Propel Healthtech provides participating companies with access to expert-led masterclasses, specialist mentoring and connections across the NHS, academia and industry, supporting innovators as they develop and scale solutions capable of addressing some of the health service’s most pressing challenges.
Share2Care West Yorkshire ICB
Through Share2Care West Yorkshire ICB, carers can create and manage a structured contingency plan, with the information made available within the NHS patient record at the click of a button through integration with NHS login. This helps ensure that authorised professionals can see that a contingency plan is in place and quickly access the information needed to put those arrangements into action when they are required.
The launch comes at a time of increasing pressure on unpaid carers. More than 600 people a day are leaving work to care for older and disabled relatives, with many more reducing their hours due to a lack of coordinated support. While new rights for carers are being introduced, a gap remains in the tools available to help people manage care alongside work and other responsibilities.
Share2Care addresses this by enabling carers to coordinate support through a trusted “circle of care”, bringing together family members, friends and others involved in care. The app provides a shared space for communication, coordination and administration, helping ensure that the right people can access the right information at the right time.
The app is accessible using users’ NHS login details, providing a secure and trusted way to manage care information while supporting integration with NHS systems.
Alexis Twigg, Founder of Care Networx, said: “Care has always happened in the community, led by families and unpaid carers – but the system has never truly seen it. Share2Care changes that by enabling carers to record and share information in a way that can support better decisions across the health and care system.”
Through its work with West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board, Care Networx has demonstrated how a consumer-led app can be developed in response to NHS requirements and integrated into existing systems. Supporting up to 250,000 unpaid carers, the programme provides a model that could be adopted by other regions looking to improve support for carers and better connect social care with healthcare.
Kulvant Sandhu, Senior Programme Manager for Unpaid Carers at NHS West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board said: “We are delighted to have commissioned Share2Care, an innovative digital solution that helps carers coordinate care more effectively by ensuring important information is readily available, including carer identification and emergency contingency arrangements. By supporting carers in their day-to-day role, it offers greater peace of mind and reassurance that arrangements are in place when they are needed most.”
Share2Care is being rolled out across West Yorkshire, with further opportunities being explored to extend the approach to other regions.
