Epital Health – a disruptive and research based approach to service transformation of health care systems

Abstract

Introduction: Many telehealth projects and initiatives loose their pace when facing the barriers of traditional healthcare organization. During the latest years, the concept of disruptive innovation has received increased attention as a method to overcome barriers by introducing new whole system designs as alternative to existing systems. processes, evaluations and clinical evidence on the project iterations. Results to date:The staffed EH call center is implemented in a municipality in the Copenhagen Region. It has started with 5 COPD GOLD Level 3-4 patients included with home technology, and has until now within a year been scaled up to 50. Business cases are developed based on the designed scaling rates, the economic goals and predicted health outcome. Mobile clinical teams are in operation for active prevention of hospitalization. Conclusions:It is important to rethink needs and incentives for all the involved partners, including citizens, in order to enable collaboration under the radical changes, without feeling threatened by savings or reductions. It is a challenge to create a common language and understanding among actors, regarding how the patients turn into active citizens and even consumers in relation to their conditions. Providers must consider changing from a patriarchal behavior to a collaborative one, and accepting the existence of disruptive and competing alternatives within their healthcare system. These initiatives have large impact and promisebut must start small due to their disruptive nature.

Healthcare Innovation—The Epital: A Living Lab in the Intersection Between the Informal and Formal Structures

“…In 2011, a project group gathered to develop the ideas of the Virtual Hospital project (Phanareth et al 2013) into a whole system approach to assisting people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and those with other chronic conditions to cope with the condition on a daily basis and during exacerbations. Participants in the project came from the healthcare service sector, private companies, universities, and patient associations.…”