United4Health aims to exploit and roll-out innovative telemedicine solutions previously validated as part of the European Renewing Health project in the treatment of patient with heart failure (HF).

These solutions will allow patients to manage their disease to adjust the choice and dose of medicines, promote treatment compliance, help professionals to detect early signs of deterioration and thus contribute to the sustainability of the health system.

The main aim of this project is to roll-out an integrated intervention using telemonitoring in HF patients to detect and respond to the organisational barriers and changes that occur when scaling up a pilot study.

Divided into work packages – project lasting 36 months.

  • 1: Project coordination, management and quality control (month 1 – month 36).
  • 2: Dissemination and communication (month 1 – month 36).
  • 3: Evaluation of the pilot study and implementation planning (month 1 – month 36).
  • 4: Management of the user advisory board (month 12 – month 35).
  • 5: Management of the industrial advisory board (inter-operability and standards) (month 2 – month 35).
  • 6: Multicentre pilot study in diabetes (month 2 – month 35).
  • 7: Multicentre pilot study in COPD (month 2 – month 35).
  • 8: Multicentre pilot study in heart failure (month 2 – month 35).
  • 9: Pilot study in hypertension (month 2 – month 35).
  • 10: Relationship to European and non-European initiatives (month 2 – month 35).
  • To promote the continuity of care by monitoring patients at home.
  • Increasing the productivity of healthcare professionals.
  • Identifying barriers and facilitators for the implementation of innovative strategies such as telemedicine.
  • An improvement in patients’ quality of life.
  • Reducing hospitalisations and the use of A&E.
  • Reducing the healthcare costs produced by chronic patients.
  • ROLE OF KRONIKGUNE: Collaborates with Osakidetza in the correct progress of WP8, which focussed on implementation of the telemonitoring intervention in heart failure. Tasks include monitoring the progress of implementation in the European regions involved and facilitating and promoting roll-out of the intervention in the Basque Country (design of the intervention, training, enrolment, evaluation). Kronikgune also participates in the dissemination and communication activities at a European consortium level.
  • ROLE OF OSAKIDETZA: Leads work package 8 (WP8; multicentre real-life pilot in congestive heart failure). Will implement the intervention in 300 patients with heart failure. The intervention group will be monitored for 12 months. The results will be evaluated using the Health Technology Assessment (HTA)-based MAST assessment methodology. This methodology analyses indicators classified into different dimensions, thus allowing clinical effectiveness, patient perception and economic, organisational, ethical/legal and sociocultural aspects to be evaluated.
  • Coordination: Ane Fullaondo Zabala; Anna Gine March, Lucía Prieto (till January 2016); Joana Mora Amengual (till October 2015); Esteban de Manuel Keenoy.
  • Principal: Nekane Murga Eizagaecheverría (IP);  Blanca Aguayo Esgueva; Guillermo Alcalde Bezhold; Alfredo Alday Jurado; Caridad Mª Arias Arias; Luis Fernando Arós Borau; Alberto Azcona Lucio; Idoia Beistegui Alejandre; Ramón Cardeiro;  Paula Castro Arroyo; Adolfo José Delgado Fontaneda; Gorka Díaz Martínez; Mª Amaya Diez Andrés; Amaia Echevarría Altuna; Gemma Fernández Peñalba; Begoña Gómez Bravo; Mª Belén Jiménez Valero; Iñaki Lekuona Goya; Cristina López Barruso; José Bautista Martínez Ferrer; Ainara Lozano Bahamonte; Miguel Ángel Ogueta Lana; Mª Aránzazu Ortiz Cerezo; Mª Lourdes Ramírez Samaniego; Mª Pilar Regúlez Ariño; Sergio Resino Santamaría; Raquel Roca Castro; Isabel Rodríguez Fuentes; Mª Isabel Romo Soler; Germán Zugazabeitia Irazabal.
  • OSI Bilbao-Basurto
  • OSI Barrualde-Galdakao
  • HUA and Araba region

United Kingdom (Scotland as coordinator), Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, United Kingdom (Wales) and Spain.