Innovation: E-health backpacks

Brazil

AAI Domains:

• Capacity and enabling environment (use of ICT)

• Independent, healthy and secure living (improved access to healthcare services, lifelong learning)

Health care systems in emerging countries are facing the interrelated challenges of a rapidly ageing population and the epidemiological transition from infectious disease (although they remain an important issue in many countries) to chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and strokes. As ever, people living in deprived communities around the world often experience the greatest difficulties in accessing health care provision that could make a difference to both the length and quality of their lives. There is always scope for innovative approaches to improving access to health care services that can be adapted and adopted in a variety of places and systems.

The New Cities Foundation is an independent non-profit organisation established in 2010 that consists of large companies such as Cisco, Ericsson and GE working alongside universities, cities and city organisations around the world to pilot and develop innovative solutions that are sustainable, creative and just. In the deeply disadvantaged Favela of Santa Marta, a typically hilly area of Rio de Janeiro with a population of around 8,000 people, the city municipality and GE established a pilot project in 2012 that ran for 18 months. GE provided local health care professionals with e-health backpacks containing state of the art health indicator measurement tools to provide in-home monitoring for 100 patients aged 60 years and over with a range of chronic health conditions.

The steep topography of the Favela and the location of the primary health care setting at the bottom of the hill made it physically challenging for older people to access health care, so this pilot enabled them to be seen at home. The pilot was evaluated by researchers from the State University of Rio, who compared participants in the pilot study with a similar control group and found significant benefits. These included increased avoidance of kidney failure (estimated cost savings of $200,541 per 100 patients per year), prevention and better management of strokes ($32,521 per 100 patients per year) and reduced hospitalisations due to heart conditions ($135,876 per 1,000 patients per year).

The market price of the e-health backpack is approximately $42,000 suggesting that it provides an impressive level of health care savings and improves older people’s quality of life and health. The e-health backpack allowed the time taken to obtain blood test results to be reduced from 15 to 3 days and with a greatly enhanced ability to detect up to 20 conditions within minutes. Both patients and health care professionals reported improved sense of empowerment and job satisfaction as a result of the pilot project.

In relation to the active ageing index, the e-health pilot provides improved access to health care services to a group of older people at considerable disadvantage. The potential benefits of scaling up the project in Rio and beyond are enticing as cities and states face the challenges of ageing and providing health care to as many people as possible as efficiently and effectively as possible. The e-health pilot also involves the innovative use of ICT to provide quicker access to test results and records that also improve the effectiveness of health care interventions.