Caring for a family member or loved one is not an easy task. The municipality of The Hague and The Hague University of Applied Sciences want to help make that easier. Between 2022 and 2023, in the Social Domain and Technology Living Lab, they investigated whether mobile apps can help and ease informal caregivers in their care tasks. The research shows that the Hello 24/7 app is useful in organizing informal care in collaboration with the social network, and that this app partly meets the needs of informal caregivers.

This study examined the added value of an app such as Hello 24/7 among working and studying informal caregivers in The Hague. Hello 24/7 is an app that supports informal caregivers by better organizing care tasks together with the social network (family/friends). The app includes a private chat environment, a shared agenda, support services for the informal caregiver, but also services for the care recipient such as personal alarms, and local and national assistance.

Research

In addition to investigating the added value of the Hello 24/7 app, the following was also investigated:

who can be reached with the app;
who the users are and how they use the app;
what the support needs of informal caregivers are;
whether users are actually informed and supported earlier, better and faster through the use of the application.

Research results

The results show that the Hello 24/7 app has added value in organizing informal care together with the network. The app partly meets the needs of informal caregivers.

The results are based on national user research by Hello 24/7, national informal care research and qualitative research (interviews) among (young) informal caregivers from The Hague.

Een visuele samenvatting van de belangrijkste onderzoeksresultaten — A summary of the most important research result

Recommendations

The recommendations based on the research results:

Recruitment from apps via both a more personal approach, for example with the help of an informal care broker, and via social media and mass media campaigns.
An approach that focuses on important moments in the life of the care recipient, such as an acute hospital admission, or of the informal caregiver, can promote motivation to use the app.
Offering the app in different languages can help attract a broader target group.
Simplifying the process of applying for municipal support via the app can help meet people's needs.

Winner SocialTech Startup Network Series

Hello 24/7 won the first prize in 2021 at the SocialTech Startup Network Series, a program in which the best start-ups in the country are guided in the development of their innovation. The jury saw the app as an opportunity to help more people who need care at an early stage and allow them to live independently for longer. An additional advantage is the link with care and service partners.