Northern Spire’s Roger advises MyFolks to help tackle isolation in the elderly

MyFolks pairs isolated, lonely or people in the early stages of dementia with local ‘Myfolksers’ who are happy to call round and spend some time with their client. After launching last year, the app-based service has gone from strength to strength and has now appointed experienced financial adviser Roger Burn to support further expansion on a national basis.

The business was founded by businesswomen Louise Thompson who was travelling hundreds of miles every weekend from her home in the south to look after her frail parents on South Tyneside. She spent years commuting between Hampshire and Cleadon and used the experience to develop the MyFolks app, which connects families with trusted and enhanced DBS-vetted people in their community who can provide support to elderly people.

Roger, an experienced financial adviser with Northern Spire Ltd, was a client before becoming a non-executive director: “My aunt had dementia for five years and we struggled to get the right care in place. It often wasn’t a medical issue, and MyFolks is not a domiciliary service, it was about somebody just popping in and spending some time with my aunt – someone you could trust, but someone who was willing to sit and chat, do a crossword, do a bit of shopping or make the tea.

“MyFolks aims to send the Myfolkser to the same person so you can build up a relationship, and that’s not always the case with other services. Myfolksers undertake light household tasks, but don’t do personal care – the focus is on providing social connection. It is also a great way to get more people into flexible, purposeful work, as Myfolksers.

“Myfolks provides support for those you love the most, at the press of a button. Research has shown that social isolation is as dangerous as smoking 15 cigarettes per day. It leads to a 32 per cent increased risk in cardiovascular disease. By providing time to develop meaningful social connection, Myfolks can help elderly people to stay well in their own homes for longer.

“I’m delighted to have joined the MyFolks team and hope I can add something to the growth of the company – and to the growing number of families helped by what is an exceptional service.”

All Myfolksers who complete the visits are vetted and reference checked and they all sign up to the Myfolk’s Code of Business Principles.  The code sets out the standards expected of Myfolksers in relation to matters such as security and handling personal data, when they are providing visits.

Vastly experienced clinician Dr Charles Young is the Medical Advisor to the Board and Louise is on the NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Programme, having spent 25 years working with blue chip tech companies.

Myfolks is now part of the National Innovation Centre for Ageing’s Internet of Caring Things Programme. It is also helped by Health Innovation North East and North Cumbria and the Arrow Programme that combines the expertise of all the north east universities to support innovation.

For more on MyFolks, go to https://www.myfolks.uk

For more on Northern Spire, go to https://partnership.sjp.co.uk/northernspire