Implementing Telecare
Developing a project plan

A project plan sets out on paper the high level (main) project tasks that need to be done to achieve the desired outcomes. In Telecare projects, the technology and equipment are only a small part of the whole project, and although often the areas where many people feel they have limited knowledge, to focus on this alone would be a mistake. Many other aspects of the service delivery process need to change – and these are likely to have a much bigger effect on whether or not the project succeeds. They need time and resources to make them happen, so need to be anticipated, planned and implemented in good time to take the project forward.

The details will depend on local circumstances, and in an initial roll-out in a limited area, the changes may seem to be quite minor. Nevertheless a Telecare project will usually require some changes to:

• operating or working processes - how work is done – in, for example, referrals, access criteria, financial assessment, call handling and response services;
• roles and responsibilities of staff;
• training – developing the skills and experience required for new ways of working.

To make these (and other) changes happen plans are also needed for:

• Communication – to raise awareness of, and interest in, the Telecare project;
• Resources – even if quite limited at this stage, these need to be identified and secured.
• Scalability – to ensure that solutions which appear to be appropriate in the immediate term may need to be revised for further roll-out.

A useful task in this initial planning stage is to identify the areas in which changes such as those identified above are likely to be required, and what their scale is likely to be. That alerts the project manager and the team to the challenges they will face, and can also alert the steering group and senior management to the likely scale of the changes. This may in turn affect some early decisions about the scope and timing of the project.