‘In truth, all psychological treatment is self-help. So you have to empower the client to get the best outcome, and we need electronic systems that people can access and so help themselves,’ says Purves, adding that in a recent study Blues Begone cured 60 per cent of patients with depression, and 50 per cent of anxiety patients. ‘The World Health Organisation say that by 2020 depression will be the second largest burden of disease in the world. This [sort of technology] is something you can just scale up and deliver when people want it.’
Monitoring technologies
Another way to reduce the need for medical assistance is to prevent avoidable accidents, such as falls, from happening.
Falls have a tremendous impact on the UK healthcare system, as 30 per cent of the over-65s have a fall each year, costing the NHS over £1bn – and, more importantly, lives.
‘Half a million elderly are at risk of falling, and the majority of falls are due to an abnormal gait,’ says Dr Diana Hodgins from European Technology for Business Ltd, designer of the Pegasus gait analysis device featured in ‘A Question of Balance’ (E&T Issue 17, 2009).
This small, strap-on device sends data from inertial measuring units to an ordinary PC or laptop and enables a gait analysis to be performed in under 10 minutes at a GP’s surgery. ‘Our goal is to quantify their gait (by measuring joint angle, stride duration and variability and phasing between the limbs) so they can be given an exercise regime to take them off the ‘at risk’ register. Everybody has got to look more at how to save money in the NHS, and the best way is early and correct diagnosis,’ continues Hodgins.