James Ding
June 9, 2025 09:51
AGE UK’s telephone friendship service is connected to lonely elderly and volunteers to improve by technology to ensure safety and efficiency.
AGE UK, a prominent charity dedicated to support the elderly, is making great progress in solving the loneliness of the elderly through telephone friendship service (TFS). According to Microsoft News, this initiative, which began in 2015, has become an important life line for many people, especially for those who feel isolated in Covid-199 Pandemic.
Increased demand in transmission
During the epidemic period, demand for TFS surged, and the number of participants increased from 2,800 in 2020 to 4,500. As this demand surged, AGE UK integrated technology to effectively expand and monitor the currency. Using Microsoft’s Speech-to-TexT service, the phone is transferred to flag the potential timely flag that requires intervention.
Safety and personal information protection guarantee
Safety is the top priority of AGE UK. Volunteers are undergoing a thorough screening, including background inspection, and cannot exchange personal information with the recipient. This protocol ensures the personal information and security of the elderly who participate in the program.
Calls are analyzed for sensitive content, including swear words and phrases such as “hungry” or “meeting business” to prevent misuse of the service. By introducing these technical measures, the manual efforts needed to monitor the phone have been greatly reduced, so that employees have to concentrate on the call that employees must truly pay attention.
Influence and future prospects
AGE UK’s efforts were not noticeable. According to a 2024 survey, 40% of TFS recipients are considering highlights, and many reports reported loneliness. The success of this service emphasizes that the demand for these initiatives is increasing, especially in light of AGE UK’s report, which emphasizes the serious effect of the elderly’s health.
AGE UK aims to improve the monitoring function by integrating AI technology to summarize the currency and perform emotional analysis. However, as Daniel Summers, the senior application and development manager of AGE UK, is pointed out, funding constraints are having difficulty in this development.
Mutual benefit
This service is helpful not only for the recipient but also for volunteers. Many volunteers, such as London, 36, compensate for the experience. She describes the conversation as “really lovely and unexpected” to emphasize the mutual interests of the service.
AGE UK’s telephone friendship service illustrates how technology and human sympathy can cooperate to solve the loneliness of the elderly, and provide a model that can be imitated by other organizations.
For more information, visit Microsoft News.
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