Taipei, Sept. 18 (CNA) Experts from the public and private sectors of the U.K. and Taiwan shared experience and expertise on the telecare industry Tuesday during an international conference.
The conference, co-organized by the British Trade and Cultural Office (BTCO) , Industrial Industry Research Institute (ITRI) , and Telecare Industry Alliance Taiwan (TIAT), was organized to facilitate learning from the U.K. experience, and at the same time exploring potential partnerships for both sides.
With 20 percent of its population over the age of 65, the UK is one of the most advanced countries in the world on the development and application of telecare technologies. There are now 1.5 million people using telecare services in the UK, said BTCO Director Michael Reilly.
"We are not trying to pretend that we have all of the solutions [in dealing with aging population and developing telecare], but our experience can probably provide Taiwan with references," he said.
Taiwan has also been working on the development of the telecare industry, said ITRI Director and TIAT President Lee Johnsee, who estimated that Taiwan's domestic market for the industry could surpass NT$7 billion by 2010.
William Maton-Howarth, Chief Research Officer for Public Health of UK's Department of Health, gave a presentation on how the UK adopted new information and communications technology to develop public health and self care systems for those with long term conditions.
"In the next few years we will be working closely across government to develop a comprehensive service that 'supports as many people as possible to live as independently as possible', " he said.
Jeremy Brown, Service Development and Project Manager from Kent County Council, UK briefed the audience on how Kent County established an open-structured telecare technology platform for nursing homes and the elderly.
Statistics from 2006 provided by Taiwan's Department of Health showed that 2.29 million people, or 10 percent of the national population, are 65 years-old or older.