Project Status

Estimated completion: 2023

LASA Presentation by the HDA Team

17:31 mins

Costerfield House

Located on the grounds of Heathcote Health, Costerfield House is the prototype, ‘Living Lab’ and display home for the Care Cabins concept.

People will be able to interact with the house’s specially designed features, including the latest artificial intelligence and assistive technology. They will be able to experience how technology helps with daily living activities. They can also understand how Care Cabins can be transported, set up, and removed easily to a new location. Heathcote community members can also improve their knowledge and understanding of in-home respite care through education and information available at Costerfield House.

Care Cabins

Together with our Architect and Board Member, Simon Drysdale, we have designed transportable and affordable Care Cabins. The approach is non-institutional and provides opportunities for the person to function independently and maintain their individuality and sense of self. The Care Cabins can be transported via truck and situated on family property to retain the familiar surroundings of community and place, where they ideally live until the end of their life.

The design of our Care Cabin concept has been informed by:

• Our Carer Advisory Group

• Professional ‘In-Home’ Carers

• Residential Aged Care Providers

• Passive House (design principles)

• Off the Grid (solar power)

• Assistive Technology

• Published design principles for dementia

Design aspects

Financial

• Financially self-sustaining with no additional cost to the government as they don’t form part of a care facility, therefore avoiding costly Building Code requirements.

• Options to lease, purchase and retain, or purchase and buyback, with the added opportunity to repurpose or refurbish for respite tourism and community-based palliative care.

Safety

• Fitted with assistive technology, artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IOT) that automates numerous support functions (e.g. an automatic pillbox, ensuring the resident is taking each dose accurately at the required time and sending notifications).

• Considerations for COVID and Infectious Diseases - A major cause of death during an outbreak in institutional care is the inability to safely section off parts of the building. Care Cabins are naturally ventilated to allow frequent air changes to reduce infection transmission. They are easily isolated in the event of infectious outbreaks.

• Residents are unobtrusively monitored 24/7 by CaptureLive AI which is able to detect and provide notifications to a carer or family in situations such as:

  • If there is a risk of a fall or the person has fallen.

  • Any change in behaviour indicating the person is confused or unwell (e.g. the person has been in the bathroom for too long or has increased frequency to the bathroom indicating a urinary tract infection).

  • The resident moves into a risky area.

  • The person’s usual habits of waking, sleeping, eating and showering has changed.

  • Changes in vitals (e.g. blood oxygen levels and heart rate).

Health

• Minimises harmful stimulation by reducing noise and moderating temperature.

• Provides good illumination for wayfinding and object identification integrated with human centric lighting to support circadian rhythms and promote sleep at night.

• Integrates internal and external places that stimulate engagement and movement.

• Maximises human scale manageability and comprehensibility.

• Creates reliable access to telehealth services.

• A carer can share the space enabling palliation to be provided in situ.

• Natural ventilation provides good indoor air quality.

Social

• A partner can live together with the resident in the Care Cabin.

• Family and friends can easily visit and stay.

• Retains existing family, community, and social networks by remaining in the same location.

 Our cluster community consortium