The Bellvitge University Hospital (HUB) monitors around 1,100 patients every day who have a device implanted to treat arrhythmias and bradycardia. This is done through a remote monitoring application that records all their heart activity without having to go to the hospital. The Arrhythmia Unit team receives real-time alerts, both of possible malfunctions of the device and of incidents in the heart rhythm. These alerts can be used to trigger care and anticipate incipient pathologies thanks to the Ritmocore telemedicine project.
In fact, more than half of the alerts detected are for atrial fibrillation. This heart rhythm disturbance does not always cause symptoms. In fact, in one third of patients, atrial fibrillation is asymptomatic. In addition, it can increase the risk of blood clots, which can lead to strokes.
"Being able to early detect a problem such as atrial fibrillation, before it can cause serious consequences for the patient, allows us to activate the most appropriate treatment protocol as soon as possible, such as anticoagulants to prevent possible strokes," said Dr Jordi Mercé Klein, cardiologist at the HUB Arrhythmia Unit and co-leader of the Ritmocore innovation project.
A 24/7 cardiology team ensuring a healthy heart beat
Since January 2021, when the Ritmocore innovation project was launched, the heart constants of HUB patients have been monitored via a digital platform. Any anomaly in the heart rhythm detected by the device is immediately sent as an alert to the HUB's medical team and specialist arrhythmia nurses.
The alert and the data emitted by the pacemaker are valuable information, which is used to make clinical decisions both in the hospital and also in the ICS South Metropolitan Primary Care Centre that follows the patient. "Remote monitoring avoids unnecessary trips to the hospital, and thanks to the data from the device the medical team can prescribe the initiation or a medication change, summon the patient for a medical visit or even evaluate the reprogramming of the pacemaker or a reintervention," according to Dr Mercé.
The patient or caregiver, via a mobile application that will be operational before the end of the year, will have information about their pacemaker and medical follow-up. This empowers the patient, who takes greater control of their state of health.
In fact, one of the basic pillars of Ritmocore is patient experience, training and self-responsibility in the knowledge and control of the main patterns of the disease. The HUB's Citizen Care and Participation Unit, together with the Electrophysiology and Arrhythmia Unit of the Cardiology Service, have worked along with the patients themselves to detect their needs.
One of the EU's leading public procurement of innovation projects
The main goal of Ritmocore is to transform the care management and care of patients with bradycardia and arrhythmia. Bellvitge University Hospital and the Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau are part of the project.
Ritmocore is one of the main public procurement of innovation (PPI) projects in health currently underway in the European Union, partially funded thanks to the Horizon 2020 programme, and with the coordination and methodological support of the Catalan Agency for Health Quality and Assessment (AQuAS) of the region’s Department of Health. Public procurement of innovation helps to foster the market uptake of innovative products and services, increases the quality of public services and contributes to tackling society's main challenges. It also aims to bridge the gap between technology and the most innovative processes, so that public sector users can benefit.
Within the framework of public procurement of innovation, Ritmocore proposes a shift from conventional device procurement to innovative service provision to achieve clinical goals. It also establishes a paradigm shift in hospitals purchasing devices from third parties, making payment contingent on results and basing services on advanced ICT systems that support a digital transformation, such as remote monitoring of patients with pacemakers.
RITMOCORE is a PPI (Public Procurement of Innovative Solutions) funded by the Horizon 2020 programme of the European Union under agreement no. 727796.