Josh Hough talks about CareLineLive and innovation in healthcare provision

“I would be in a different career now, if I had gone to university. If I'd be enjoying that or not, I don't know.” Tech entrepreneur, Josh Hough is reflecting on his career path. He set up CareLineLive in 2014, after struggles to access up-to-date information about his grandfather’s care. The idea was simple, to create a holistic platform for the social care industry which served the needs of staff, clients and family members. In just 12 years, it’s grown to assist over 600 providers in 7 countries, with 42 staff and a revenue of over £3.5m.

He set it all up aged just 18. He’d missed the entry requirements to study Law and Business. So, he took a year, got his grades up and reapplied, but decided to turn it down. “By that point, I’d started doing IT solutions for people,” he tells me. “I realised that was better for me than staying in education.”  

He'd started working on a platform which brought order to a vastly complicated process. Carers can often be doing several visits a day, the ability to quickly access and record information is vital in offering an effective service. “They might be doing medication or providing personal care,” says Josh. “There's a broad array of what they're doing. Our platform organises all of that. We do the scheduling, invoicing and payroll.” In addition to this, the portal keeps a record of observations, like blood pressure or blood sugar levels, to assist with spotting any irregularities.

“We have both family circle and care circle portals, which allow other stakeholders to see that certain care has happened, when it should be happening and read any comments and notes.”

The first iteration of the platform was in 2012. Back then there was no holistic monitoring of visits, and no method to seamlessly share schedules and crucial information between concerned parties. “Everything was very rudimentary. A carer would go to your home, call a free phone number and enter a PIN. That would tell a system they’d arrived. But they'd have a paper rota and be recording everything manually.”  What Josh realised was there existed a need for a system which pulled all the intricacies of caregiving together. Born with a rare muscle weakening condition, there were several home visits from healthcare professionals while he was growing up in Horsham. His experience showed him there could be improvements in how the sector is supported.

“People would come and see me and never have the right information at their fingertips. That was the NHS, and it is now changing... But, ultimately, carers face similar issues. You've got a book in each house, which has the notes. But you can't read that on your way there. Now, you can read notes, see a risk assessment, check the care plan… You're aware of what you need to do before you get in.” While Josh didn’t have a huge amount of money to invest into his start-up, what set him apart was his approach to creating the platform.  

He tells me many of his competitors have grown their own products through acquisitions of other platforms and integrations. “What's different about us is that we've designed everything. We’ve made our product better by listening to what customers need, and not just providing what we think is a good idea.” Some quick research shows CareLineLive as the only five star rated care management platform on Trustpilot. Josh says much of this is down to developing an engaged support team, as well as providing something which is simply reliable.  

In modern Britain, there seems to be several failings around the successful integration of technology into health and social care sectors. Sometimes it seems like we’ve become hypnotised by complexity, to the point of inaction. Perhaps the answer is, rather than deploying herculean top-down responses, instead develop solutions at a front-line level – whether that’s in social care or health provision.

“Ultimately, I recognise this is an industry which needs technology, but doesn't necessarily want it,” says Josh. “For us, it's always been about making sure we build support capacity almost ahead of when the customers need it. It's not just about the product. It's about the ethos. It's about creating something as a service to others.”

Currently, it does seem like social care is like the third rail of politics. There are massive issues within the current system. But no Government has had the nerve (or extensive resources) to address the growing issues within ensuring provision.  

“I think we’ll have a really interesting time moving forward, because we know the elderly population is increasing, and so care in the community is going to become far more important. Keeping people independent and living in their home is also important. Social care hasn't been looked at properly. You can take the negative view that it's too big a problem. But let’s ask how can you get efficiencies? Can you get scale? How can you ever make it better?”

He tells me there shouldn’t be any barriers to entry for disabled people in the business world. Although, there are a few issues regarding raising finance for ventures. “It's difficult to not be stereotypical, because this is not always the case... But there can be a problem when you're a founder and a venture capitalist is investing in you. They're saying: ‘We believe you can do this.’ And you've got something which affects your life on a daily basis which they don't understand. Of course, that's going to make a difference to their view on investment security. And I would be wrong to say I wouldn't understand that. The flip side of that is sometimes, due to that, some people don't go and do things because they don't feel they can.”

As a measure of public perception around disability, Josh points to Channel 4’s recent documentary, Fight To Fly. This focused on a young woman’s various experiences with airlines as a wheelchair user. “You watch that and it grows into a fear that it's gonna happen to you. So, you don't do it, because you don't feel you can. I’d just come back from Morocco at the time. I always try and walk, unless I really, really can't. But I want to board an airplane first, so I can put my bag up, sit down and don't get knocked over.”

This has seen some people suggesting he’s not disabled, because of his ability to get about unaided. Or even that he needs to travel using a wheelchair, so these needs can be recognised. “Although society now tells us it’s accepting, I don't think it is yet. Or it might be accepting… but certainly not understanding without the ‘visibility’ as well.”

How to change perceptions around disability is a massive question. And probably not one society can tackle overnight. “I think we have to first give more equal opportunities. If you walked into a shop and the person behind the counter was wheelchair bound, and you saw that on a regular basis, you’d start to think it was ‘OK’. There are employers who will call themselves disability-confident, but it's about people knowing there are opportunities out there, so they feel empowered to take those and society can see this is normal.”

For now, Josh is effecting change in his own way. There’s now plans to adapt his software platform for other territories. The home care space is global. He’s looking at the Australian market and establishing what their particular sector might need. “There are a significant number of synergies between there and the UK. Although, it's all much better funded over there. It will need us to open a 24/5 Customer Support Centre. That’s not something we’ve seen anyone else offering. The best way to look after people, is to listen to every person who's got some kind of interest in it.”

www.carelinelive.com  

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