The quiet revolution in care work: Treili's CEO on how care technology changed everything

Care work isn't transformed overnight – but sometimes change begins with a moment that initially seems small. Treili's CEO Leena Lehtonen explains how a single piece of care technology made visible what had previously been left to guesswork: the real workload, the effectiveness of care and everyday safety. The result wasn't a technical upgrade, but a quiet revolution in how care work is managed, understood and experienced.

"Technology shouldn't be a bolted-on extra – it has to strengthen the quality of care work."

The social and healthcare sector is currently going through major change. The core of care work has always been the human being, not technology – but according to Lehtonen, care technology implemented the right way can play a decisive role in improving care quality, safety and employee wellbeing.

Treili Oy is a Finnish pioneer in social services, offering mental health services, services for the elderly and family services.

At Treili, Iiwari Care was originally adopted to meet an external obligation: residents had to be guaranteed the ability to call for help 24/7. But at an early stage it became clear that the technology's impact would be far broader than that.

"We've only received positive feedback from our nurses. Being able to see in real time where colleagues and residents are is incredibly valuable in a maze-like care home."

Iiwari Care – care technology that became part of everyday life

According to Lehtonen, Iiwari Care isn't just a nurse call or locating system. It was a leap towards an organisation where care technology is a natural part of every process.

"Iiwari Care became part of our work. It's not a separate device, but an integrated part of the daily operation of care work."

Lehtonen highlights four responsibility themes where care technology can genuinely change the future of care work:

1. High-quality and safe working life

Work ability, manageability and safety are the foundation of wellbeing in care work – and technology offers ways to support them.

2. Strengthening collaboration

Care work is teamwork. Real-time visibility and information sharing make collaboration and development dialogue smoother.

3. Supporting work ability in everyday hazardous situations

Fast access to extra help and fewer risk situations are concrete benefits that care technology brings along.

4. Developing competence and technological maturity

The social and healthcare sector needs to learn how work is changing – and technology can make that change visible and measurable.

"With the help of care technology, we can influence responsibility on a much larger scale."

Data that changes the quality of care work

Treili runs a monthly QWL (Quality of Working Life) survey, which produces research-based data on the state of employee wellbeing. When these results were combined with the data produced by care technology, an entirely new level of visibility into the workload of care work emerged.

Care technology makes it possible to:

• verify whether the work in a given unit is actually heavier
• assess variation in care intensity with data, not gut feeling
• allocate resources more fairly

"Now we know exactly how much time is spent with an individual resident and how care intensity varies. That supports the development of quality of working life in a very concrete way."

Safety: when seconds matter

The additional-help call feature in particular has changed the safety culture in care work.

"We use the additional-help call every day. The emergency call is rarely needed, but knowing it's there significantly increases the sense of safety."

The improvement in safety is reflected in:

• immediate access to help
• fast response capabilities in medical emergencies
• better work ergonomics
• fewer risk and violent situations

When care technology turns response time into a matter of seconds, the result is real impact – not just efficiency.

Productivity: technology frees up nurses for what matters most

Lehtonen is a realist:

"I don't believe care technology will reduce staffing ratios in the near future. But it makes the work considerably smoother."

How does this show up?

• less unnecessary walking
• fewer disruptions and less waste
• clearer workflows
• more time for interactions with residents

"The biggest problem in the social and healthcare sector is weak productivity in the work itself. Our role for care technology is to help us use limited resources better."

A partnership, not just a customer relationship

One of Lehtonen's strongest observations relates to the development of care technology:

"Iiwari has a genuine desire to develop. We can suggest improvements, and they get rolled out into production quickly. That's a huge competitive advantage."

Lehtonen feels that Iiwari isn't just selling them a product – it's building the future together with them.

"We can trust Iiwari's technology. And above all: it keeps evolving."

"I wouldn't want to go back."

Lehtonen sums up her experience in a sentence that captures the whole value of care technology:

"I wouldn't want to go back to how things were."

Iiwari Care came to Treili to meet a basic need – but it stayed because it:

• improves safety
• streamlines workflows
• supports management and responsibility
• raises the quality of working life
• evens out workload
• makes differences in care intensity visible
• builds a culture of continuous improvement

From Treili's perspective, care technology shouldn't be a standalone add-on to everyday work. It has to be part of the quality, safety and effectiveness of care work.

For them, Iiwari Care is exactly that.