Barriers and Facilitators to the Implementation of Personalised Medicine across Europe

Abstract

(1) Background: Personalised medicine (PM) is an innovative way to produce better patient outcomes by using an individualised or stratified approach to disease and treatment rather than a collective approach to treating patients. PM is a major challenge for all European healthcare systems. This article aims to identify the needs of citizens in terms of PM adaptation, as well as to provide insights into the barriers and facilitators categorised in relation to key stakeholders of their implementation. (2) Methods: This article presents data obtained from the survey “Barriers and facilitators of Personalised Medicine implementation—qualitative study under Regions4PerMed (H2020) project”. Semi-structured questions were included in the above-mentioned survey. The questions included both structured and unstructured segments in an online questionnaire (Google Forms). Data were compiled into a data base. The results of the research were presented in the study. The number of people who participated in the survey can be considered an insufficient sample size for statistical measurement. In order to avoid collecting unreliable data, the questionnaires were sent to various stakeholders of the Regions4PerMed project, which includes members of the Advisory Board of the Regions4PerMed Project, but also speakers of conferences and workshops, and participants in these events. The professional profiles of the respondents are also diverse. (3) Results: The insights on what would help in the adaptation of Personal Medicine to citizen needs have been categorised into 7 areas of need: education; finances; dissemination; data protection/IT/data sharing; system changes/governmental level; cooperation/collaboration; public/citizens. Barriers and facilitators have been categorised into ten key stakeholders of the implementation barriers: government and government agencies; medical doctors/practitioners; healthcare system; healthcare providers; patients and patient organisations; medical sector, scientific community, researchers, stakeholders; industry; technology developers; financial institutions; media. (4) Conclusions: Barriers to the implementation of Personalised Medicine are observed across Europe. The barriers and facilitators mentioned in the article need to be effectively managed in healthcare systems across Europe. There is an urgent need to remove as many barriers as possible and create as many facilitators as possible to implement personalized medicine in the European system.

An Assessment of the Knowledge and Perceptions of Precision Medicine (PM) in the Rwandan Healthcare Setting

“…However, there is still a gap in the collection of genetic or genomic information due to the limited genomic infrastructure in hospitals. The findings of this study are consistent with the existing literature, where limited clinical data on the determinants of diseases and limited availability of genetic data, as well as complex logistics, were reported as barriers hindering the integration of PM into cancer treatment [30][31][32]. In fact, Erdman et al reported that a lack of sufficient genetic, environmental, and lifestyle information is a barrier to implementing PM [33].…”

Bridging the Divide – a Review on the Implementation of Personalized Cancer Medicine

“…These statements are important evidence of what the field itself perceives as significant determinants of the present conditions. In the article "Personalised Medicine barriers facilitators healthcare systems" Stefanicka-Wojtas and Kurpas explore the needs, barriers, and facilitators of implementing Personalized Medicine (PM) in European healthcare systems [63]. The barriers for the implementation of precision medicine are categorized into seven areas of need and ten key stakeholders.…”

Bridging the Divide: A Review on the Implementation of Personalized Cancer Medicine

“…These statements are important evidence of what the field itself perceives as significant determinants of the present conditions. In the article “Barriers and Facilitators to the Implementation of Personalised Medicine across Europe”, Stefanicka-Wojtas and Kurpas explore the needs, barriers, and facilitators of implementing personalized medicine (PM) in European healthcare systems [ 74 ]. The barriers for the implementation of precision medicine can be categorized into three main factors (policy, organizational, and economic) and six key stakeholders (patient, authorities, policy makers, funding agents, industry, and academia).…”