The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is funding eight new research projects that will help people self-manage chronic conditions, such as COPD and diabetes, at home while linked to support from carers and clinicians – funded through a 10 million pound investment.
The research will take place at seven UK universities; involve over 30 partners from industry, charities and the public sector who will add contributions worth over three quarters of a million pounds.
The studies will use conditions such as COPD, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, and dementia as examples to test technology and systems’ designs. The projects have different emphases, some will concentrate on how systems can be made more intelligent and interpret incoming data, while others will develop and refine sensors and monitoring equipment and ensure they can be accessed securely.
Professor Philip Nelson, chief executive of the EPSRC, said: ‘The UK has an aging population and the demands on our health services are growing. Monitoring chronic conditions through outpatients’ clinics is both costly and time consuming for patients, surgeries, and hospitals. Using these new technologies provides ways of gauging a patient’s health in real-time and detecting any deterioration quickly. This will help people remain in their homes for longer, avoid congestion and delay and mean treatment can be targeted quickly and when it can be most appropriate and effective.’
Details of the individual projects can be found on the ESPRC website.