Additional Reading: Examples of Digital Transformation in Healthcare

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Examples of Digital Transformation in Healthcare 

    

    

DeepMind Health Research and Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust: A Patient's Story

As examples of patient engagement two projects led by Medtronic: the INCAP project and GetReady are shown here. These examples showcase the potential of digital health solutions to improve healthcare delivery via:

  • Providing real-time feedback on a topic for healthcare practitioners, patients and caregivers.
  • Actively engaging patients in their care planning.
  • Offering tailored education according to patients’ conditions.
  • Providing a smooth communication channel between hospital, HCPs and caregivers.

INCAP- INtegrated CAre Programme

INCAP (INtegrated CAre Programme) is an example of a simple, but powerful digital health solution that can integrate information from different sources to offer more streamlined personalised services to patients.

INCAP is a comprehensive care solution for patients with Type 1 Diabetes. It includes a continuous glucose infusion system that combines the support of digital technologies and an educational programme for patients/caregivers. INCAP aims to improve the efficiency of the care process and the impact on the health results of patients with Type 1 Diabetes, in addition to more patient involvement in managing their diabetes.

INCAP was an EU-funded project (EIT Health) whose objective was to improve the quality of life of European citizens and the sustainability of health care and social assistance systems.

This comprehensive care solution is based on three pillars:

  1. A remote monitoring support centre (CSSR) to offer a customised disease control for individual patients
  2. An educational programme for further patient empowerment,
  3. A communication channel between the hospital and primary carers.

Through a remote monitoring system and the two-way communication channel between primary carers and the hospital, the INCAP solution offers feedback and tailored recommendations which reinforces the education/nutrition/exercise information that the patient received in the hospital.

The INCAP solution can also improve the continuity of care by offering better coordination among all stakeholders, including patients, caregivers, hospitals and healthcare professionals.

This solution was implemented for the first time, for this patient profile in January 2019 at Puerta de Hierro Hospital in Madrid for the follow-up of adult and paediatric diabetic patients for 18 months:

  • The potential benefit of INCAP for the patient is:
    • Improvement of patient care (clinical and emotional aspects of the patient),
    • Promotion of healthy behaviour,
    • Improvement of the patient’s experience in the management of their condition:
  • Individualised education in their care,
  • Increase in quality of life and perception of safety,
  • Patients’ Active participation and empowerment,
  • INCAP can benefit the hospital/region by offering:
    • Efficient use of existing resources.
    • Improved coordination of care.
    • Cost reduction: reduction of face-to-face visit time, the possibility of postponing face-to-face visits due to the patient's stability and avoiding future complications [1].

 

References

[1] INCAP - EIT Health. Accessed June 4, 2022. https://eithealth.eu/product-service/incap/