Heart patients are getting on the move thanks to digital innovation

A ground-breaking digital platform is set to improve outcomes for cardiac patients by allowing them to complete supervised rehabilitation programs at home, thanks to research from Deakin University.

Professor Ralph Maddison and Dr Jonathan Rawsthorne of the Deakin Institute of Physical Activity and Nutrition developed digital platform to enable allied health professionals to supervise home rehabilitation programs.

A smartphone-based cardiac rehabilitation and assisted self-management (SCRAM) intervention allows clinicians and rehabilitation professionals to access data electronically for exercise monitoring and personalized coaching. They can follow multiple people at the same time. The concept of remote monitoring with immediate feedback to clinicians and rehabilitation professionals is innovative.

“Cardiac rehabilitation saves lives, but many people miss out on it because they can’t attend hospital programs and relatively few Australian rehabilitation services offer any alternatives,” Dr Rawsthorne said.

“The SCRAM platform is critical to helping more people access the life-changing benefits of cardiac rehabilitation. Studies show that those who complete a cardiac rehabilitation program have a 30% reduced risk of death from cardiovascular causes and a 20% reduced risk of hospitalization, but attendance rates are low. Even before COVID, only 20-30% of eligible people were participating in hospital-based rehabilitation programs.

“Alternatives such as the SCRAM platform have become even more important during the pandemic when many hospital programs have been closed, particularly in Victoria and New South Wales. Many services have started telephone programs, but they cannot provide close monitoring or coaching. The SCRAM platform solves these problems. problems”.

SCRAM’s easy-to-use platform consists of a mobile phone app and a heart rate sensor placed on the patient’s chest that sends data via the cloud for real-time monitoring by doctors. SCRAM also provides lifestyle support/advice via push notifications.

The researchers developed the platform after recognizing that clinicians and cardiac rehabilitation specialists lacked an independent means of monitoring patients’ postoperative compliance rehabilitation plans. They knew that adherence had significant benefits for patients’ recovery, and realized that modern technology could provide the answer.

The SCRAM platform is currently being tested by Western Health and others medical services monitor compliance with the rehabilitation of cardiac patients. It is being trialled in regions including Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo and overseas in Sweden, and is now being used in trials with Barwon Health and the University of Melbourne to help people with cancer before and after treatment.

SCRAM also has the potential to remotely monitor other diseases and post-operative and pre-operative conditions, such as people with diabetes, weight problems or chronic obstructive pulmonary diseasefor example.