Folkhälsan invests in well-executed communication and housing services through the One4all digital service platform
Folkhälsan’s campus in Ruskeasuo, Helsinki, consists of three buildings. Among them, the Folkhälsan House is a multifunctional facility that provides housing services for the elderly, group home care, daytime activities, and services for both residents and outsiders. The adjacent housing cooperatives, Majblomman and Gullkronan, offer housing services for the elderly. All three buildings are structurally interconnected. There is a tunnel beneath Mannerheimintie connecting Majblomman to the Folkhälsan House, and a glass tunnel bridge on the other side of the street connects Gullkronan to the Folkhälsan House. But these buildings are not only physically connected; they are also integrated through the One4all digital service platform.
But what does a digital service platform mean in practice, and how is it utilized in the everyday lives of the elderly? Majblomman has two digital notice boards and One4all Mobile resident application. Gullkronan, on the other hand, has five digital notice boards, four of which are touch screens and one is a passive screen. Majblomman communicates entirely digitally to its residents through digital notice boards and the resident application, while Gullkronan’s information is centralized on digital notice boards.
In contrast, the Folkhälsan House uses a bigger information board than the digital staircase notice boards. The big board is used to share everyday information such as daily menus and events. Some of the information from this board is also displayed on Gullkronan’s and Majblomman’s screens, making campus information centralized. It’s convenient for the elderly to be able to read board announcements without having to go separately to the Folkhälsan House lobby to read them.
It all started with digital notice boards
“When Gullkrona was completed in 2018, the One4all digital notice boards were part of the package, so to speak, and the decision was made by the developer at that time. We were impressed by how easy and fast it is to share information digitally, so we decided to invest in digital service at Majblomman as well, in 2022,” says Nicklas Ekström, Technical Manager at Folkhälsan.
Currently, Folkhälsan utilizes the One4all digital service platform in five buildings: Ruskeasuo, Käpylä, and Tapiola, totaling up to 13 digital notice boards. In three buildings, in addition to the displays, the One4all Mobile resident application is also in use.
“Although passive information displays work well in Gullkrona, we will invest more in touch screens in the future,” he continues. A touch-enabled digital notice board allows users to choose the information they want to read. However, Folkhälsan efficiently uses passive notice boards with four different information fields where four active notices can be seen simultaneously. Alongside general announcements, these display fields also show, for example, the Folkhälsan Facebook feed, which residents might not otherwise follow.”
Active residents have embraced the service well. The combination of digital service and the elderly may raise questions, but Nicklas states that residents have embraced the service quite well, with the majority of Majblomman’s residents using the app via tablets or computers.
“In Majblomman, all information flows through the app since most residents use it. We have invested in ensuring residents adopt the service. Particularly, one resident, who also serves on the Majblomman board, has been very active and supportive in its adoption,” says Nicklas.
Folkhälsan has also listened to residents’ opinions regarding font and text size on the displays. Digital displays are actively used not only by residents but also by their visiting relatives.
“In an elderly housing community, it is extremely useful that residents’ relatives can easily read current messages and news or check contact information from the display,” says Nicklas.
For example, he mentions that last summer they published a list showing when property maintenance was on vacation and who was available weekly. By sharing information in this simple way, both relatives and residents can trust that contact information is up to date and necessary information is easily accessible.
Booking calendar could be the next investment
Both Majblomman and Gullkronan offer great communal spaces that residents can book for their own events. Currently, bookings are made by phone or email, but Nicklas sees that residents could greatly benefit from the opportunity to book spaces through the app’s booking calendar.
“We have very nice event spaces that residents can book and rent for their own events. By utilizing integration between the existing access control system, iLOQ S5 and S10, and the One4all digital booking calendar, we could easily grant residents access to the spaces they’ve booked through the calendar. This could be a future investment that residents could benefit from. This is something to consider in the future,” says Nicklas.
Digital service runs smoothly
Overall, Folkhälsan has been very satisfied with the service. “Everything has gone smoothly. Of course, with a digital service, there may be times when the internet connection is down or similar issues, but that has been very rare, and we have always received help quickly when needed,” says Nicklas.
The only thing Nicklas currently misses is the ability to digitally update the resident’s name on the mailbox, as it would make updating resident information even easier. Who knows – perhaps that will become our product in the future?
This article is an ai-generated translation of the original article in Swedish.