172 kits installed across 123 care locations, supporting 3,544 people
Whzan case studies and media releases:
- Local care providers use digital toolkit to monitor vital signs and prevent health deterioration
- Whzan reassures care home staff, managers, residents and their families
- Whzan reassures families of local residents receiving home care
- The Whzan Blue Box “speaks for residents who can’t talk”
- 90 local care homes are using Whzan to reduce hospital admissions
- Burlington Hall shares their experience of a range of digitising social care projects including Whzan
Project close down
The Whzan Blue Box remote monitoring system has been piloted in Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes for a number of years – most recently funded through the national Digitising Social Care (DiSC) Scaling Fund 2024/25. This pilot was evaluated in August 2025, with the findings submitted to the national team.
The findings from anecdotal and survey feedback suggest good potential, although the 12-month scale-up project was unable to fully demonstrate the planned benefits and impacts due to the lack of robust data resulting from inconsistent usage within the smaller cohort. Staff felt confident and empowered, the number of vital signs readings increased, quality of life was improved, and the tool enabled prevention of deteriorating health. Read more about our findings.
As the pilot projects have now come to an end, regular users of the Whzan Blue Box are being supported to sustain the use of technology through the extension of their 12-month license, after which time they will be able to take on their own license should they wish. They are also being offered a final opportunity to replace any pieces of equipment within their Whzan kit that are no longer working – at no additional cost. This opportunity will be open until 31 January 2026. Care providers who are eligible for this offer will be written to directly.
We would like to thank all the care providers who took part in the project for their time and participation, along with all the support from system partners in encouraging and supporting the take up of technology.
- If your Whzan license has expired, or if any of your kit is broken and needs replacing: Please contact Chris.Longson@whzan.com who will be able to support with the next steps and the costs associated with this.
- If your team requires refresher training: Please contact Support@Whzan.com for more information.
- If you no longer want your Whzan kit: Please return it to Solcom Limited, 79 George Street, Ryde, Isle of Wight, PO33 2JF.
- If you want to find out more about Whzan: Visit the Whzan website.
Spotting health issues early in care home residents
Knowing exactly how well or ill a person is at any one time can be difficult – but care homes in BLMK are now able to monitor the health of residents much more closely, thanks to a user-friendly system.
The Whzan Blue Box contains everything needed to enable staff to make regular health checks on their residents. Being able to see early signs of things changing means they can alert clinical colleagues before the person becomes so unwell they need hospital care.
Measurements such as heart rate, blood oxygen levels, temperature and blood pressure can be taken with the kit, which is also used by our partners in community support teams and ambulance services. An additional feature of the system is that it works out the National Early Warning Score (NEWS2) – the method used to check if someone who is already ill is becoming worse.
The remote monitoring system can send the resident’s test results straight to their GP if the practice is set up to receive them, helping to speed up diagnosis and care. It also tells care home staff what a resident’s results mean – staff don’t need to be medically trained to understand the information.
By nipping health issues in the bud in this way, fewer ambulances need to be called and residents are less likely to have to stay in hospital. Care homes also benefit by using their resources more effectively as they don’t need extra staff to care for sick residents.
Felicity Cox, Chief Executive of NHS Bedfordshire, Luton, and Milton Keynes Integrated Care Board has recorded a series of podcasts beginning with the increasing developments of digital innovations in healthcare, including Whzan Blue Box. You can listen to all podcasts on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
What our care services say:
APT Home Care in Luton shared how Whzan prompted carers to seek immediate medical attention, which ensured timely and potentially life-saving support for someone in their care: “Although vital signs were within normal range, her Whzan score was elevated due to her acute confusion. The supervisor then noticed that she had developed slurred speech, which raised further concerns. Staff immediately contacted NHS 111 who swiftly dispatched an ambulance.”
“If you don’t have a registered nurse on site, you should definitely get Whzan. Because as good as your staff team are, they’re not trained medical professionals and it gives reassurance to yourself, your staff, families and the residents that you’re maintaining checks. It’s small and easy to store, easy to use, and has benefits for everybody.” – Claire Croucher, Manager, Precious Homes Milton Keynes
“We can use Whzan to get their observations and a NEWS2 score. Doctors appreciate this information and will come along to see clients as needed… Whzan offers our clients and their families reassurance that their health is ok and that we are keeping an eye on this, and that we can notice any changes straight away and get medical intervention early to prevent hospitalisation where possible, and it’s a great help to prevent hospital admissions.” – Dana West, Manager, Home Instead Milton Keynes
“The Whzan Blue Box speaks for residents who can’t talk. It’s a really useful tool for any care home to have and gives us the help we need for our residents much more quickly.” – Sylvester Mulenga, Senior Carer at Oasis House Residential Home
“We’ve recently started using the Whzan Blue Box, and it’s already coming in handy and proving successful. When one gentleman wasn’t feeling well, we were able to give the National Early Warning Score to his GP, who then attended.” – Helen Butler, Manager, Community Alarm Service
“The technology has made such a positive difference and transformed our care home. Our residents are safer and healthier, and our staff are happier because they can now give more time to the residents, while also knowing the care they can give is so much better.” – Dawn McGuire, Registered Manager at Chase House
“This kit absolutely increases the quality of life of the people we support because the readings help us identify if a resident is unwell or if their situation is getting worse.” – Kamal Benipal, Registered Manager at Bellevue Care Home
“It’s been over two years now, and we can’t imagine life without Whzan because it’s very helpful for all the staff and residents. I feel very empowered that I’m giving the best care and I feel very confident using it at work.” – Shujna Hussain, Senior Carer at Tickford Abbey Care Home
“The equipment is very simple to use, so the person using it doesn’t have to be medically qualified… It can avoid unnecessary calls, but if the care home is concerned about readings which they might feel are not normal for that resident, then they can contact us for further advice.” – Dr Paul Singer, a GP in Luton and Chief Clinical Information Officer for BLMK Integrated Care System
What residents say:
“It is like a like modern nurse in a residential home. It allows information to be passed on quickly to other healthcare professionals if further treatment is required. If I was to have a fall, I know the seniors would use the Whzan kit to check that I was okay and that there was nothing wrong. It has done previously, and will continue, to give me peace of mind in knowing that I am okay.”- JG, resident at Burlington Hall Care Home for more than eight years
Contact us at:
blmkicb.digital.socialcare@nhs.net