Digital Brokering: Project Report

The digital brokering system is a new concept designed to connect those who need services with those who can provide them. This concept was proposed by Albyn Housing Association and the University of the Highlands and Islands, and accepted by the Digital Health & Care Institute as an Experience Lab, which took place in December 2014 in Inverness. The Experience Lab aimed to create a setting for stakeholders (service users, public sector, third sector and private businesses) to elicit issues around the deployment of a digital platform. Using Actor Network Mapping, the Lab focused on identifying existing practices and barriers of service provision, and exploring potential solutions for the digital brokering system.Several key findings emerged relating to the barriers faced by services users in relation to knowledge, accessibility and availability of services, which led to the identification of the opportunity for the software to function as a directory with high functionality offline as well as online. Additionally, the identification of unmet needs, service exchange and a skills bank represented how the software could have a role in connecting resources within communities. Findings included implications and recommendations regarding the responsibility of the moderator, the functionality and roll out of the software.