CARE LENS TECKNO 2030

Can you introduce yourselves?

LiCalab is a care innovation lab that is part of Thomas More University College. We support companies and organisations in the care and welfare sector through user research. We explore, co-create, test, and evaluate innovative solutions with users in their living and working environments. Our focus is on care technology and the innovative organisation of healthcare.

How did your project come about?

LiCalab was actively involved in developing the 8 principles. To translate these principles into practical tools, we collaborated with VITO and Familiehulp, launching the Care Lens Teckno 2030 project.

What are your project objectives? 

The Care Lens Teckno 2030 project has developed tools to encourage technology-driven healthcare organisations to discover, apply, and integrate the 8 principles.

What tools are you developing?

We created a workshop guide to engage citizens or patients in discussions on care technology and services. This guide was developed closely with citizens. It includes supporting materials, such as a card set, available in both printed and digital formats.

How are you proceeding?

LiCalab always uses a user-centred design approach to ensure that new developments meet real needs. We have our own panel of users, which includes both citizens and healthcare professionals. We also work closely with local authorities, healthcare organisations, and an extensive (international) network. Through these collaborations, we aim to grow and support the community that upholds the principles for caring technology.

Why is your project important?

We believe that co-creation with all stakeholders (including end-user citizens) is essential in the innovation process for caring technology. However, we have found that co-creation is more challenging in practice than expected. For us, it is a core activity.

What challenges have you encountered?

The learning community around the 8 principles had a difficult start. Since multiple projects were working on the same topic simultaneously, the main challenge was to align the results of these various projects. We realised that establishing a common language was a crucial first step before developing practical tools.

What lessons have you learned from this process?

To motivate an organisation to use the 8 principles, the benefits must be clear. Currently, the principles offer an inspiring framework for transitioning from smart to caring technology, but additional incentives are needed.
There remains a significant gap in digital and health literacy among citizens. Technological development must therefore go hand in hand with initiatives that can bridge this gap. We need to find ways to raise awareness among citizens and caregivers about the themes covered by the 8 principles. This means making the principles very concrete and tangible.

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