PASSION-HF

Goal

The goal is to overturn the current system of care for heart failure. Until now the approach has always been reactive: the patient does not feel well, goes to the hospital and gets treatment there. The doctor-at-home app will enable preventive rather than reactive action.

The virtual doctor is always ready, keeps track of all the info and can thus prevent worse. With the app, the patient is also in control of his own care and is always personally accompanied. 

In addition, PASSION-HF aims to ensure that the care provided to patients with heart failure remains of high quality and is based entirely on scientific evidence.

Relevance

Heart failure is one of the most common chronic diseases in North West Europe. Today, more than 3.6 million people within that area suffer from heart failure and by 2025 there will be more than 5 million due to an aging population.

The problem is that caring for a patient with heart failure costs a lot and that currently, care is only provided by professionals. With the increasing number of heart failure patients, this cost will only increase and the care providers will no longer be able to cope with the number of patients. In order to be able to guarantee high-quality care for this chronic disease, the current care system must be changed, and that is what PASSION-HF wants to do.

Letting the patients themselves take responsibility for their own care could be a solution, but that possibility is currently insufficiently supported. The current eHealth applications do not replace care, stand alone or are merely extras. PASSION-HF’s app is very different in this regard: the app will assist patients 24/7 in their self-care and support decision making.

This is not a simple app, but a research-based, reliable virtual doctor that is constantly evaluated and adjusted by both medical and technical experts. The app is based on artificial intelligence so it learns from each situation and always adapts to the needs of the patient. However, the focus was also placed on attractiveness, which motivates patients to consult the virtual doctor. When the virtual doctor considers it necessary, he or she can refer the patient to a physical doctor.

The doctor-at-home app will reduce healthcare costs without compromising the quality of care of the heart failure patient.

Our role

In collaboration with the other technical partners, Mobilab & Care takes care of defining the functional outlines of the platform and the elaboration of the technical architecture or infrastructure. In addition, as a platform architect, Mobilab & Care takes on the coordination of the various system integrators, including the development of the platform. In the role of business process analyst, we actively participate in the implementation of various decision models as part of the computerized clinical thinking and decision-making process. We are also responsible for the graphical and functional design towards the care provider. Furthermore, we coordinate the communication for the project.

Future

The creation of a communication strategy already led to a website and a number of publications. In terms of technology, a decision support system was chosen. Mobilab & Care took the initiative to design the architecture for this. At the same time, a process is already in place to convert all the available science-based guidelines for medication into a computer-based thinking system. This forms the engine of the system to support the cardiologist and the patient.

An initial test product is currently being developed and will be tested in a subsequent phase in a clinical international study.