Zorggroep Noordwest-Veluwe (ZNWV), a care provider in the Netherlands that is specialized in senior care, is part of the development of the care robot in the Guardian project. ZNWV supports the design and development parties to create functionalities have real added value.
Vilans researcher and project coordinator Henk Herman Nap says the following about Guardian: ‘With the Guardian robot, the caregiver knows whether his loved one has fallen and he is then able to establish a speech-image connection by driving the robot to the senior.’
A major social challenge that is also experienced at Zorggroep Noordwest-Veluwe, is that informal carers are finding it increasingly difficult to maintain their work life in addition to the care responsibilities they already have. Another challenge is that there are increased shortages in healthcare professionals. Henk Herman Nap: ‘With Guardian we therefore want to develop a robot for coaching, monitoring and social contact. With the robot, the home care nurse and informal carer are informed on the well-being of their client or loved one remotely. We focus on healthcare professionals and informal carers who care for elderly people living at home.’
