Case study: Nyby as a key to national expansion of the Norwegian Cancer Society's practical help services

• Many people want to help out on a voluntary basis, for which we are incredibly grateful. In less than six months, we have recruited as many as 116 volunteers for the transportation service. These have so far performed 214 transportation assignments distributed among 73 cancer patients. It goes without saying that we have had a need for smarter and safer coordination between volunteers and users. But also for us, the employees of the Cancer Society, in eight regional offices. Without a tool like Nyby, we would not have managed this, says Special Advisor in the Cancer Society, Hanne Hovde Bye.

In addition to preventing and fighting cancer, the Norwegian Cancer Society works to increase the quality of life of patients and next of kin. Two of the services the organisation has developed are Hverdagshjelpen (Everyday Help) and the Transportation Service.

Nyby makes it psossible for us to safely store information about our users. When we help people who has cancer with practical tasks, it is important to safeguard privacy (special adviser in the Norwegian Cancer Society, Hanne Hovde Bye).

Expanded from one to eight districts in six months

Hverdagshjelpen (The Everyday Help) was established in Trøndelag (Norway) in 2015, and will help people with cancer, next of kin, and those left behind with practical help at home. The Norwegian Cancer Society started using Nyby in 2018 and during 2020, Hverdagshjelpen and the Transportation Service were expanded to all of the organissation's eight districts.

The Transportation Service is a new activity that arose in the spring of 2020 after the Norwegian Cancer Society saw a need during the coronary pandemic. People with cancer undergoing treatment often have weakened immune systems. Many therefore refused to go to the doctor and hospital, for fear of being infected with covid-19. With the Transportation Service, the Cancer Society's volunteers offer free car rides from home for check-ups or cancer treatment. The Transportation Service is also an arena for good conversation. Many of the users are isolated from their friends and family due to the pandemic. The volunteers are good conversation partners during the transportation. Common to both services is that volunteers and users establish contact with each other in Nyby.

• Now that we have expanded our activities to several places in the country, we also save a lot of manual registration. Because everything is entered into the Nyby app, we are also able to get in touch with users faster.

Digital training across districts

The experiences from the very beginning of Hverdagshjelpen five years ago have given the Norwegian Cancer Society valuable experience with Nyby. It was natural for them to use Nyby when they rolled out the Transportation Service to the whole country during the corona pandemic this spring.

As a result to the restrictions due to the corona epidemic, all training had to take place digitally. Including the use of Nyby. The Norwegian Cancer Society's employees have had weekly digital courses.

• An important success factor for effective deployment throughout the country has been digital training across regions. We have also set up test groups in Nyby. Here, the volunteers can practice using Nyby, before they go active. The test groups have now become an important part of the training, says Hovde Bye.

Good collaboration

The Norwegian Cancer Society is one of Nyby's most important customers. Hovde Bye praises the collaboration with the developers in Nyby.

• Nyby has been solution-oriented. When there has been a feature in Nyby missing or does not suit our needs, the developers have been creative in finding good solutions to our challenges. Nyby foresee the solutions for us.

User-friendly app - and help to get for those who need it

Several of those who the Cancer Society helps through Hverdagshjelpen and the Transportation Service are of older age. Not everyone has access to smartphones and apps.

• We get feedback from volunteers that the app is user-friendly and easy to use. But many of those we help find it difficult. We know that Norwegians in general find it difficult to ask for help. We also know that many people with cancer have a strong desire to manage on their own in the comfort of their home. The threshold for asking for help is therefore very high for many. Then it is essential that the app is easy to use.

The Norwegian Cancer Society helps those users who are unable to register at Nyby or download the app.

• We focus on having good schemes to help those who find the technical part of it difficult. Everything to lower the threshold for receiving help is important, Hovde Bye emphasises.

A digital platform for resource collaboration

Nyby is a platform for resource collaboration in the health and public sector that frees up more hands to important welfare tasks, and which at the same time contributes to increased inclusion, reduced loneliness and low-threshold path into labour life.

Nyby works so that qualified resource persons have access to relevant assignments and can get in direct contact with those who need help. It is flexible to contribute: The resource persons only enter into dialogue where they see that they have the opportunity to help, and do not have to say no to anyone. Those in need of assistance do not have to forward the assignment themselves, but can get help from health personnel, next of kin or the like. It is the local government/organisation itself that decides what they want to use Nyby for, what kind of services are to be organised and who is qualified to contribute.

Nyby can also be used for:

• Resource collaboration accorss units and departments
• Events
• Next of kin communication

It is educational and exciting to work with the Norwegian Cancer Society. Their experience provides great value for us in Nyby and contributes to us being able to develop the platform further (Product Manager in Nyby, Magnus Køber)

(Both photos: Ole Martin Wold/The Norwegian Cancer Society)