Innovative Outdoor Support and
Care Service Ensures Better Quality of Life and Care for the Elderly
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Society is now placing a great deal of emphasis on people's quality of life. The elderly are no exception to this trend. Needless to say, elders are now in their "golden age" as they can enjoy the lives free from worry. Many Hong Kong elders remain very active in community activities and even lead more fruitful social lives after retirement. However, concerns on physical degeneration or illnesses inevitably discourage many senior citizens from pursuing outdoor activities. What must be done to relieve elders' concerns and enable them to lead fuller and more fulfilling lives?
Winner of the 'Best Ubiquitous Networking Grand Award' of the Hong Kong Information and Communications Technology Award 2008, the brand new Mobile Link Service, is an ideal solution for elderly and their families. Says Timothy K.W. Ma, Executive Director of the Senior Citizen Home Safety Association (SCHSA), "The Mobile Link Service extends the piece of mind our existing Personal Emergency Link Service has been rendered to our users to the outdoor environment, effectively providing seniors with round-the-clock support and care. Leveraging the new system's cutting-edge GSM mobile technologies, users can be connected to the SCHSA's 24-hour Call Centre and obtain timely assistance by simply pressing a button or pulling the strap with pull-pin at any time1. This innovative service ultimately ensures elderly users to enjoy outdoor activities with peace of mind".
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| The Mobile Link Service has scooped four titles in the Hong Kong ICT Award 2008, contributing to a safer and better living environment for the elderly. |
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Professional Partnership Helps Develop Continuous Networking Service
The award-winning solution is the impressive end result of extensive collaboration between SCHSA, CSL Ltd. and mSolution Consultants Ltd. To ensure the service's successful implementation, each partner leveraged its specialist expertise and experience at every stage of the development process. According to Irene Leung, CSL's Executive Vice President of Corporate & Business Market: "The biggest challenge we faced during the development of the Mobile Link Service was how to put the cutting edge network technologies and support services effectively into the lifestyle of the elderly that can meet their needs for support service."
"As the new senior citizens' Mobile Link Service uses different communications network support technologies from our existing products and services, we worked closely with SCHSA during the development process. In fine-tuning this highly innovative and practical service, our design teams not only had to understand the outdoor lifestyle of elderly people, they also listened to SCHSA's expert opinions and requirements", said Leung. She added that in perfecting the new service's software, CSL cooperated closely with its long-term partner, mSolution Consultants Ltd. The ultimate goal was to enhance the software support and stability of the service to ensure that as many as possible elderly people can benefit from using it.
Both Ma and Leung are delighted to see the Mobile Link Service bringing positive benefits to society by helping to significantly reduce the number of hidden elders. They also expect that wider usage of the new Mobile Link Service will enable more and more elderly to enrich their lives by stepping beyond their front doors and going into the community.
1. Under normal mobile network coverage (local only)
