Smart technology is becoming increasingly important in the healthcare industry. This is certainly true for residential elderly care and more specifically for assisted-living housing projects in which this vulnerable group lives without constant supervision. ZorgAndersTV paid a visit to Residence Felix Brouwershof, where IP Building and Nextel have created “smart assisted living homes”.

Residence Felix Brouwershof is a prestigious residential project operated by Zorgbedrijf Antwerpen situated in the heart of Antwerp’s Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-Waver, an area in the municipality of Sint-Katelijne-Waver. The residence, constructed by Cornerstones comprises 69 assisted living homes, of which 67 have a terrace and/or garden, spread over 2 buildings that enclose a cosy courtyard.

(The video is in Dutch, should you like to obtain the English translation, feel free to contact us on info@ipbuilding.com)

In this Residence the residents have a tablet with touchscreen at their disposal, from which they can use and manage all functions in the flat (lighting, heating, sunscreens, etc.) in a very easy way. The intelligent emergency call system is also part of the whole package.

ZorgAndersTv interviewed Kris Pensaert (CEO IP Building), Joël Schols (Business Director Healthcare & Hospitality Nextel), Annemieke Van Glabeke (Sales and Operations Cornerstones) and Joeri De Ren (Director Customer services, Sales and Growth of the Zorgbedrijf Antwerp).

ZorgAndersTV made two reports on Smart Assistance homes. This time, the reporters of ZorgAndersTV visited the De Linden Assisted living flats in Kapellen (Antwerp). The people behind this initiative, psychologist Yo Buyens and architect Pieter Goffin, built 17 flats there, with a surface area ranging from 67 m² to 111 m².

“The building is very bright and we really wanted to create the feeling that this is a normal flat, and not an assisted living flat,” says Pieter Goffin. “The flat needs to adapt to its occupant’s care needs. That is why we also started looking for a suitable solution to make the assisted living flats ready for the future.” The promoters eventually opted for IPBuilding and turned their apartment building into a real Smart building. All controls such as for lighting, heating, screens, and others are operated via a touchscreen. Also, residents can make emergency calls via the same system, together with movable push buttons and a push button/necklace that residents can take with them. Home nurse Jan Van Gils, who provides care in De Linden, experiences the added value of IPBuilding’s Smart Care solutions. “When a resident of De Linden places a call, I immediately get a message on my phone about who is contacting me and where that person is located inside the flat. I can also communicate with the resident, via a high-quality two-way communication system. At the same time, the TV switches itself off, so I can better understand the person. To ensure the residents’ safety, the hob is also automatically switched off, the temperature of the floor heating is raised and all of the lights in the apartment are switched on.”

Controlled remotely

In addition to the benefits for residents and nurses, the Smart Care system also offers numerous benefits for the building manager. Peter Goffin and Yo Buyens can monitor the entire building remotely. This includes building access and access to the individual apartments and common area, camera surveillance, temperature monitoring, and more. Salveto has also selected IPBuilding’s Smart Care solutions for the other new projects in the pipeline (incl. in Kalmthout and Mariaburg).