An amalgamated concept of Internet of m-health Things (m-IoT) has been introduced recently and defined as a new concept that matches the functionalities of m-health and IoT for a new and innovative future (4G health) applications. It is well know that diabetes is a major chronic disease problem worldwide with major economic and social impact. To-date there have not been any studies that address the potential of m-IoT for non-invasive glucose level sensing with advanced opto-physiological assessment technique and diabetes management. In this paper we address the potential benefits of using m-IoT in non-invasive glucose level sensing and the potential m-IoT based architecture for diabetes management. We expect to achieve intelligent identification and management in a heterogeneous connectivity environment from the mobile healthcare perspective. Furthermore this technology will enable new communication connectivity routes between mobile patients and care services through innovative IP based networking architectures.

The survival rates for patients living with cancer are increasing, due to recent advances in detection, prevention and treatment. It has been estimated that there were 28 million cancer survivors around the world in 2012. In the UK, for patients diagnosed in 2007, it is predicted that more than half of them will survive their cancer for 5 years or more. A large majority of cancer survivors report unmet supportive care needs and distressing symptoms and adverse long-term consequences related to their cancer. Cancer management could be optimized to better meet patients demand through technology, including mobile health (m-Health). m-Health is defined as the use of mobile communications and network technologies for health care. m-Health can help both patients and health-care professionals and play an important part in managing and delivering cancer care including managing side effects, supporting drug adherence, providing cancer information, planning and follow up and detecting and diagnosing cancer. Health authorities have already published guidelines regulating m-Health to insure patient safety and improve the accountability of its applications.

This study demonstrates SMSs are acceptable, cost-effective, and feasible in supporting diabetes care in the challenging, resource-poor environment of modern-day Iraq. This study is the first in Iraq to demonstrate similar benefits of this technology on diabetes education and management to those seen from its use in better-resourced parts of the world. A randomized controlled trial is needed to assess precise benefits on self-care and knowledge.

BackgroundCOPD is among the leading causes of chronic morbidity and mortality in the European Union with an estimated annual economic burden of €25.1 billion. Various care pathways for COPD exist across Europe leading to different responses to similar problems. Determining these differences and the similarities may improve health and the functioning of health services.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to compare COPD patients’ care pathway in five European Union countries including England, Ireland, the Netherlands, Greece, and Germany and to explore health care professionals’ (HCPs) perceptions about the current pathways.MethodsHCPs were interviewed in two stages using a qualitative, semistructured email interview and a face-to-face semistructured interview.ResultsLack of communication among different health care providers managing COPD and comorbidities was a common feature of the studied care pathways. General practitioners/family doctors are responsible for liaising between different teams/services, except in Greece where this is done through pulmonologists. Ireland and the UK are the only countries with services for patients at home to shorten unnecessary hospital stay. HCPs emphasized lack of communication, limited resources, and poor patient engagement as issues in the current pathways. Furthermore, no specified role exists for pharmacists and informal carers.ConclusionService and professional integration between care settings using a unified system targeting COPD and comorbidities is a priority. Better communication between health care providers, establishing a clear role for informal carers, and enhancing patients’ engagement could optimize current care pathways resulting in a better integrated system.

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BackgroundChronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a serious long-term lung disease in which the airflow from the lungs is progressively reduced. By 2030, COPD will become the third cause of mortality and seventh cause of morbidity worldwide. With advances in technology and mobile communications, significant progress in the mobile health (mHealth) sector has been recently observed. Mobile phones with app capabilities (smartphones) are now considered as potential media for the self-management of certain types of diseases such as asthma, cancer, COPD, or cardiovascular diseases. While many mobile apps for patients with COPD are currently found on the market, there is little published material on the effectiveness of most of them, their features, and their adoption in health care settings.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to search the literature for current systems related to COPD and identify any missing links and studies that were carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of COPD mobile apps. In addition, we reviewed existing mHealth apps from different stores in order to identify features that can be considered in the initial design of a COPD support tool to improve health care services and patient outcomes.MethodsIn total, 206 articles related to COPD management systems were identified from different databases. Irrelevant materials and duplicates were excluded. Of those, 38 articles were reviewed to extract important features. We identified 214 apps from online stores. Following exclusion of irrelevant apps, 48 were selected and 20 of them were downloaded to review some of their common features.ResultsOur review found that out of the 20 apps downloaded, 13 (65%, 13/20) had an education section, 5 (25%, 5/20) consisted of medication and guidelines, 6 (30%, 6/20) included a calendar or diary and other features such as reminders or symptom tracking. There was little published material on the effectiveness of the identified COPD apps. Features such as (1) a social networking tool; (2) personalized education; (3) feedback; (4) e-coaching; and (5) psychological motivation to enhance behavioral change were found to be missing in many of the downloaded apps.ConclusionsThis paper summarizes the features of a COPD patient-support mobile app that can be taken into consideration for the initial design of an integrated care system to encourage the self-management of their condition at home.

Background: Telehealth is defined as the remote surveillance of a patient's health to aid early diagnosis and timely intervention. Understanding how the stakeholders perceive telehealth can influence its acceptability and diffusion. Introduction: A primary care trust (PCT) in south London has been providing telehealth services for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and heart-failure patients for the past 22 months. The aim of this study was to elicit practice nurses’ perceptions of the telehealth service provided by this PCT. Materials and methods: A descriptive qualitative design was chosen to elicit practice nurses’ perceptions. A semi-structured email interview was used to investigate their experiences of the service to date and their views about the future of the service. Results: Seven nurses, working on telehealth for an average of 15 months and providing the service to 34 patients, were interviewed. Overall, the nurses described their experience with telehealth to be positive. Lack of resources, organisational support, patient selection criteria and technical support were identified as barriers to effective implementation of telehealth. Additional team members, more input and training, and expanded patient selection criteria were suggested by the nurses to enhance and ensure the success of telehealth. Discussion and conclusions: The challenges and barriers to the implementation of telehealth identified by the practice nurses need to be addressed by health services to ensure its continuity and success.

Internet of Things has been one of the catalysts in revolutionizing conventional healthcare services. With the growing society, traditional healthcare systems reach their capacity in providing sufficient and high-quality services. The world is facing the aging population and the inherent need for assisted-living environments for senior citizens. There is also a commitment by national healthcare organizations to increase support for personalized, integrated care to prevent and manage chronic conditions. Many applications related to In-Home Health Monitoring have been introduced over the last few decades, thanks to the advances in mobile and Internet of Things technologies and services. Such advances include improvements in optimized network architecture, indoor networks coverage, increased device reliability and performance, ultra-low device cost, low device power consumption, and improved device and network security and privacy. Current studies of in-home health monitoring systems presented many benefits including improved safety, quality of life and reduction in hospitalization and cost. However, many challenges of such a paradigm shift still exist, that need to be addressed to support scale-up and wide uptake of such systems, including technology acceptance and adoption by patients, healthcare providers and policymakers. The aim of this paper is three folds: First, review of key factors that drove the adoption and growth of the IoT-based in-home remote monitoring; Second, present the latest advances of IoT based in-home remote monitoring system architecture and key building blocks; Third, discuss future outlook and our recommendations of the in-home remote monitoring applications going forward.