New Wearable For Managing Chronic Illness

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

A prototype for proactive COPD patient management was unveiled at Dreamforce 2014.

A prototype of a new device to support patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has been launched by Royal Philips and Radboud University Medical Center. The device is the result of a joint venture designed to leverage mobile, digital, and cloud technological applications to improve patient outcomes, care coordination, and patient empowerment to healthcare.

According to a press release, managing chronic COPD can be difficult and expensive as the progressive nature of the disease often leads to complicated therapies and frequent hospital readmissions. Patients affected by COPD are looking to take greater control over their personal health and this prototype is seen as a way to empower them to do just that.

“Unlike other wearable solutions recently introduced to the market, this prototype collects more than just wellness data from otherwise healthy people,” said Jeroen Tas, CEO, Healthcare Informatics Solutions and Services, Philips. “We are demonstrating the power of harnessing both clinical and personal health information to better manage chronic disease patients across the health continuum, from healthy living, prevention, diagnosis, treatment, recovery, and homecare.”

The new COPD wearable diagnostic prototype collects regular data on patients, including levels of physical activity, respiration levels, heart rhythm, and heart rate. The data is then transmitted via the cloud to the Philips HealthSuite Digital Platform, where it is shared via the eCareCoordinator application with the appropriate care providers. This transmitted data then provides a more complete picture of the state of the patient’s illness and can be used to track and predict necessary steps of care.

“Together with Philips, we are exploring and developing tools to enable patients to be true partners in their own healthcare, thus creating a digital platform for patients to collect data from EMRs as well as personal wearable technology," Lucien Engelen, director REshape Innovation Center at Radboud university medical center explained. "Our collaboration with Philips creates the scale needed for a globalizing sustainable healthcare approach."

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates nearly one-half of the U.S. adult population – some 117 million Americans - suffers from at least one chronic condition with one in four adults afflicted with two or more. According to the CDC, caring for patients with chronic illnesses accounts for as much as 70 percent of the annual healthcare spending in the U.S.

Furthermore, a study conducted by the World Economic Forum found the five leading non-communicable diseases (chronic respiratory disease, cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and mental ill-health) could cost $47 trillion globally by 2030.