ELETVONAL 24

Hungary

2000

The service aims to help frail older people with physical/cognitive limitations to live independently as long as possible and to support their informal carers by reducing their caring tasks and stress.

Életvonal 24 Ltd. is a company with bank support and private capital, providing emergency help. Up 2009, the alarm system main motivation was to supplement the mandatory part of social care aiming at sick older people’s independence, financed by local governments required by law. This represented a good market opportunity for private companies (by contracting out). However, from 2009 the alarm system is no longer part of social aged care (communities must apply for funding). Since the social welfare business has shrunk the firm current driver has turned towards the market.

 Care Recipients
 Informal carers
 Paid assistants
 Formal carers

The service focuses on frail elderly people living alone in particular and also on their informal carers: spouses, sons, daughters and daughters in law.

 Independent Living
 Information and learning for carers
 Personal Support and Social Integration for carer
 Care coordination

The service fosters the independence of partially dependent older people, living alone or far from their families affected by chronic illness such as, diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, high blood pressure, as well as of persons with disability or other physical impediments or requiring a constant or occasional higher home security (e.g.: during rehabilitation after an accident). In this way informal carers are also relieved, informed and supported, since it is the family that often covers the costs. Furthermore, the service assists local governments to home care moderately or highly dependent older people.

The device is an alarm that can be worn as a wristband or a necklace connected to the telephone line through a table top device.

Both public and private

Public service funding: Government, Regional, Local Authorities, non-profit public entities

Not available

Private out of pocket: users pay the service by themselves

Not available

The company’s current strategy is to open-up to the market to grow.

Two options are available, depending on whether the device is purchased or rented, and its length of time:

1. Purchasing: 100 € (28.600 HUF) for the equipment, 19 € (5000 HUF) for the installation and a 14 € monthly fee.

2. Renting: 23 € for the installation, a 5 € plus 23 € for service monthly fee. If the service is contracted out with a local government, the monthly cost of 14 € starts from the second year. In that case, emergency help is part of the home care system and older people pay a low sum or receive the service free of charge.

The sustainability will depend on the reaction of the market to the closing down of the social welfare support. The technical reproduction and transfer of the enterprise should not be a problem even if, in the private sector, it could be hard to find care recipients affording the market price. State funding is decreasing, therefore it is essential to be present in the market.

€ 10,000 - 50,000

Not available

 Authorities
 Private Care Sector
 Health and Social Care Systems
 Third Sector
 Private Companies

Not available

Not involved

 Informal Carers
 Health Professionals
 Social Care Professionals
 Privately-Hired Care Assistants (inc. Migrant Care Workers)
 Volunteers

Not available

Not applicable

Not available

Not available

Not available

Not available

Not available

Strengths:

1. The beneficial technology and service formerly incorporated in the formal care system helps informal carers and older people.

Weaknesses:

1. The change made in the public sector negatively impacted on both care recipients and their families since they now have to pay the full cost of the device/service that was previously provided free of charge or at low cost. The erosion of ICT in the social sector also means reducing an element of eldercare, as its availability has now been placed on the market. Therefore fewer older people and their families are able to afford it, due to the relatively high price of the service.
2. The website has not been translated into English, reducing its transferability.
3. No impact assessment has been provided
4. The service is not present on the internet, as the website is down since June 2013 (at least).

Opportunities:

1. A future challenge is find an affordable solution for care recipients, who were previously cared for by the public sector to bring them over as a customer to their market-based service.

Threats:

1. Since the market presence is becoming increasingly important for the service providers., many of users with a lower socioeconomic status are now excluded from this ICT opportunity. Despite the development of technology, this tendency is growing as a consequence of the economic crisis.
2. The change in social policy may be difficult if the company cannot strengthen its market position. The exclusion of emergency alarm support from the basic public eldercare system and the change in its funding (after 2009, funding is no longer required by law) will restrict the scope of potential customers in the public sphere and therefore may decrease the contracting out by local governments.

Challenges

1. To find an affordable solution for care recipients who were previously cared for by the public sector in order to bring them over as a customer to their market-based service

The service has a limited local coverage. It is operatively mature but currently no fully integrated into the care system. The change in social policy may create difficulties if the company cannot strengthen its market position. The exclusion of emergency alarm help from the basic public eldercare system and the change in its funding scheme (after 2009, funding is no longer required by law) could reduce the number of potential customers in the public sphere and decrease the contracting out by local governments.

Future funding depends on private users’ the financial resources, which are limited by the global economic crisis, making it difficult for families to pay for this kind of device. To gain more users a moderate price is needed. Due to the service user friendliness and effectiveness it could be easily exported to other areas and countries but this requires an investment in translating the service and its applications in other languages as well as in looking for international partners.

Publications:

Eletvonal 24, available at http://eletvonal24.hu/

 

Address: 1094 Budapest Tűzoltó u. 31

Telephone: 0036 1 577 6226

E-mail: info@eletvonal24.hu