Digital Health At the Service of the Patient and the Health Professional

news

Digital Health at the Service of the Patient and the Health Professional

In February, the Lovexair Foundation brought together prominent members of the Advisory Board and Advisory Group in Madrid to present in greater detail the various projects developed by the

In February, the Lovexair Foundation brought together prominent members of the Advisory Council and Advisory Group in Madrid to present the various projects developed by the Foundation in greater detail. Other guests from the health sector and other specialties also participated in this meeting. Through this event, the Foundation wanted to show its interest in raising awareness among citizens about respiratory diseases, including common respiratory diseases and rare respiratory diseases.

During this meeting, Jordi Vilaró Vice Dean of Postgraduate Studies, Research and International Relations at FCS Blanquerna-URL and Eva Maroto, Director of the Area of Patients, Technological Innovation and Training at the Lovexair Foundation, presented the first data obtained as a result of the pilot study carried out with m-health (patient monitoring devices).

This integrated care program with m-health is being developed in 3 Madrid hospitals and, although it has not yet been completed, the first data confirm that thanks to the digital health program, patients adhere better to treatment and improve their quality of life. In turn, the program includes the figure of a coach specialized in respiratory health who accompanies the patient in managing their disease.

The study that is being carried out at the University Hospital October 12, the La Princesa University Hospital and the San Carlos Clinical Hospital, has the participation of 44 volunteer patients with an average age of 65 years. Within the study, we highlight that there are two groups: a control group made up of 22 patients and an intervention-monitoring group with an app made up of another 22 patients. The volunteers who are participating in this study are diagnosed with COPD grade II, III and IV on the GOLD scale, in a stable clinical situation. Thanks to this study, the Foundation highlights the importance of using this type of tool, since it helps to overcome the lack of knowledge that users have about their disease.

For this reason, the members of the Foundation's Advisory Council reiterated the need to include this type of digital tools to improve communication between professionals from different specialties. In addition, it would allow them to manage the health of their patients virtually, obtaining a new management model that guarantees the sustainability of the system.

On the other hand, in this same meeting, Dr. Tamara Alonso, from the Pulmonology Service of the La Princesa University Hospital, revealed interesting data such as COPD being the third leading cause of death in the world. According to data from the Epidemiological Study of COPD in Spain (EPI-SCAN), the global prevalence of COPD in our country between 40 and 80 years of age is 10.2%. Hence the need to implement training programs aimed at citizens, since the impact of COPD in Spain is high and has not yet reached its highest values.

Along the same lines, Carlos Royo, Director of Health Business Development at GMV, has reiterated that "we are on the verge of collapse in our health system". For this reason it is necessary to implement new technologies in the current health system to reduce the high cost of chronic diseases. Andreia Jianu, member of the Foundation's Patient Advisory Group, explained the saturation suffered by the emergency services due to a high number of unnecessary consultations.

Shane Fitch, president of the Foundation, pointed out during her speech the lack of knowledge and lack of interest in respiratory diseases. What causes that many patients are not correctly diagnosed. In short, the projects developed by the foundation are intended to provide theoretical and practical resources to solve the lack of information that exists regarding respiratory health. Lovexair's purpose is to network with other health professionals (doctors, physiotherapists, pharmacists, etc.), to offer solutions aimed at patients and citizens.

Likewise, the Foundation supports research into respiratory diseases (rare and common) through the dissemination of information to publicize advances in this area.

Among other researchers, we highlight the excellent work carried out by Dr. Antonio Moreno, Head of the Pneumology, Allergology and Cystic Fibrosis Section at Hospital Vall d'Hebron, and Dr. Francisco Dasi, Researcher and Coordinator of the Rare Diseases group at INCLIVA (Institute of Research Health), work that is slowed down due to the lack of resources to finance research projects, a problem that young researchers also face.

In conclusion, the attendees agreed on the need to include new communication channels in which the professional can establish a more direct and close contact with the patient. The transfer of health competencies to the autonomies prevents, on many occasions, the correct development of the work by the health worker, and this causes inequalities that affect the quality of life of the patient.