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Care Technology Glossary of Terms

We have compiled a list of key terms used in the technology-enabled care sector. This resource will be continuously reviewed and updated. Please inform us if there are any terms you would like to see added to the glossary.

AJAX progress indicator
  • Often abbreviated to pen-testing, it refers to legally hacking into a computer system or website with the owner's approval to reveal vulnerabilities and find opportunities for improving its security.
  • This refers to devices that are installed in the home as part of a telecare or telehealth system and which link to a Dispersed Alarm Unit or hub. Peripherals may include sensors, pendant alarms, sounders, and alarm notification receivers.
  • A way of providing care and support that sees people using care services as equal partners in planning and developing care to ensure it meets their needs.
  • This refers to monitoring parameters such as pulse rate, respiration rate, blood pressure, the level of oxygen absorbed in the blood, and basal temperature, often through peripheral sensing devices, so that clinicians can be informed of changes in a patient's condition.
  • See Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN).
  • Support provided by people who are located close to the person needing it, and normally within the same property.
  • This is the model of providing care and support that is delivered ‘upstream’ to intervene at an earlier stage than where an alarm may be triggered. Thus, it aims to prevent emergency situations from arising.
  • This is the process of actively contacting service users, usually by telephone, to establish their wellbeing. This could include using a guided questionnaire that records their responses to a range of questions. Any significant changes in wellbeing could be used to instigate an intervention to prevent any deterioration in wellbeing, thus supporting a preventive approach to care and support.
  • A set of agreed rules for exchanging messages and information within or between components of a system.
  • The Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), sometimes called the Plain Old Telephone Service (or POTS), is a dedicated network for conveying analogue voice from one point to another. It is being replaced with a new IP-based digital network and will be switched off by the end of January 2027.
  • A medical device that indirectly monitors the oxygen saturation of a patient's blood and provides pulse rate information.