Webwatch

Articles contributed by Iriss for the Webwatch section of Care Appointments magazine.

Periscope - video streaming

Twitter is great for keeping up to date with what's happening, finding interesting information and sharing it with others. If you use Twitter and like it, you may be interested in Periscope, a live video streaming app for iOS and Android. The developers of the app became fascinated by the idea of discovering the world through someone else's eyes - in real-time. In their words, Periscope is described as' a visual pulse of what's happening right now'.

Living it Up

Living it Up describes itself as an online self-management hub, which aims to empower people to improve their health and wellbeing. Aimed at the over 50s, the resource is packed full of ideas and activities and is useful for those with long-term health conditions, those who provide care and anyone who wants to improve their health, wellbeing and quality of life. It is driven by a collaborative community approach.

Canva - a simple design tool

If you want to present information in a more creative, engaging and memorable way but have no design skills, Canva can help you. Canva is a really simple design tool that requires no experience or formal training in graphic design programs such as Photoshop or Indesign. It enables you to create posters, flyers, infographics, website graphics, invites and even presentations without any fuss, and in no time at all. And it's free to use. Simply set-up an account and start creating designs.

Wiggio

Communities of practice or enterprise social networks as they're also known are great for sharing learning, developing new connections and collaborating. The Knowledge Hub, Yammer and Socialcast are examples of platforms where people come together to collaborate, network and share information. These online communities can save a lot of time and money as there's no need to travel long distances, replenish the petrol tank or raid the purse for train and bus fares.

Fit for the Future

Fit for the Future is a partnership project of Iriss and Scottish Care dedicated to inspiring better outcomes for older people by working with providers from the independent sector. The project worked with care homes and care at home providers in four areas - Argyll and Bute, Falkirk, North Lanarkshire and West Lothian - to support innovation and service redesign. Key areas such as outcomes, care in times of transition, community links and compassion were explored.

DIY (Development Impact and You)

At Iriss we believe that innovation is not a practice reserved for 'the creative' or 'the experts' and that people innovate all the time. We focus on how to blend and adapt ideas to support social innovation and on how we need to accept risk and failure as central components of innovation. A toolkit - Development Impact and You - has been developed by Nesta in partnership with The Rockefeller Foundation to support and encourage social innovation.

Care Opinion

Care and support is something all of us will receive at some point in our lives. However, our experiences of that care are likely to vary. Some of them will be good and perhaps even excellent, and some might be dissatisfactory and disappointing. Opportunities to express opinions about these good and bad experiences are not always available. Services often have complaints procedures in place but people may not wish to formally complain: rather they might prefer to suggest a change to improve a service, or comment on very good or bad care. And that's where Care Opinion comes in.