What is a test bed?
According to VINNOVA, a test bed is a physical or virtual environment where companies, in collaboration with stakeholders in the healthcare or eldercare sectors, can develop, test, and implement new products, services, processes, or organizational solutions.
What is the Malmö Elderly Care Test Bed?
It is a platform focused on developing and testing new ideas and solutions in practice—solutions designed to improve the quality of care and enhance the sense of safety and security in people’s own homes. The ideas and solutions are designed to meet the needs of people aged 65 and older. The Testbed focuses on three areas of need: social interaction, perceived safety and security, and housing/one’s own home.
Who runs it or is behind it?
The Elderly Care Test Bed is run by the City of Malmö in close collaboration with Forum for Social Innovation Sweden, Malmö University, and Medeon AB, with support from VINNOVA.
What is the timeline for the test bed?
The project began in 2013 and will conclude in October 2016.
What are the expected outcomes of the “Testbed for Elderly Care in Malmö” project?
The goal is to establish a testbed as part of the City of Malmö’s innovation initiatives in health and social care. The testbed will develop and identify innovative solutions that can help improve the quality of health and social care in Malmö. The aim is to enhance the quality of care based on the needs of service users.
Why is Forum for Social Innovation Sweden Forum for Social Innovation Sweden Forum for Social Innovation Sweden Forum for Social Innovation Sweden Forum for Social Innovation Sweden participating Forum for Social Innovation Sweden this test bed?
For one thing, Forum for Social Innovation Sweden is Forum for Social Innovation Sweden in finding out what the design perspective can bring to health and social care in Malmö. For another, many of the solutions that emerge are examples of social innovations: challenge-driven solutions to pressing societal challenges.
Where did the idea for test beds come from?
In April 2011, the government tasked VINNOVA with launching an initiative focused on test beds in the healthcare and eldercare sectors. The aim was to strengthen innovation capacity in healthcare and eldercare and to boost the competitiveness of the business sector.
Are there more test beds in Sweden?
Yes! There are test beds, test environments, and innovation hubs in areas such as healthcare, elder care, environmental technology, sustainable urban development, and schools—that is, operations within municipalities and county councils/regions.
What is the connection between a test bed and social innovation?
Many of the ideas and solutions that emerge from a test bed are innovations that address societal challenges.
What is the role of design or design thinking in the project?
The biggest contribution is that many different solutions have been developed, with a focus on the users. The problems that arise are reframed and visualized, which is a hallmark of design thinking. The testing environment is supportive and involves users, family members, staff, and others on an ongoing basis.
Is the Testbed a design lab?
While no project descriptions explicitly state that the Testbed for Elderly Care in Malmö is a design lab, with support from Forum for Social Innovation Sweden large parts of its operations have begun Forum for Social Innovation Sweden be run in the same spirit and with a project structure similar to that of a design lab. Just like a design lab, the Testbed places a strong emphasis on a user and citizen perspective. It supports development work in which staff, users, researchers, the business community, and the nonprofit sector continuously collaborate to create new solutions for the challenges of today and tomorrow in elder care.
What is a design lab?
A design labis a platform that emphasizes the design process as a means of experimenting with new solutions to complex societal challenges. In addition to creativity, design is characterized by a focus on co-creation methods that are grounded in the needs and perspectives of users, with particular emphasis on how problems are identified and defined, and on testing different possibilities on a small scale.
What does the user perspective mean?
A user is a “client” or a patient. In other words, it is the person who receives the care provided by staff in elder care and home care services. Having a user perspective therefore means viewing the operations from the user’s point of view and striving to create services and a daily routine that are as user-friendly as possible.