tirol kliniken launches telemedicine app for liver transplant recipients

In addition, patients can use the application to access physiotherapy exercises and are actively supported in taking their medications, it was said. Although a chat function allows questions to be directed to the treatment team, the app is not an emergency or alert system. Responses are provided within 20 to 30 hours, usually sooner.

Cornelia Hagele, Tyrol's State Councillor for Health (ÖVP), said: "Eine Lebertransplantation ist viel mehr als nur ein chirurgischer Eingriff. Viele Betroffene seien vor und nach der Operation mit Aufregung und Unsicherheiten sowie umfangreichen Informationen konfrontiert". With the new tool, there is an opportunity to compensate and respond to existing anxieties.

Contents and features of the application

Around 70 to 80 liver transplants are performed at the Innsbruck Transplantation Centre each year, it was reported. Currently, around 27 patients are using the app. Initial feedback, however, indicates that the application has been well received.

Scientifically evaluated results are not yet available, the treatment team explained. Patient data is stored within the hospital network and, as with all other software systems, is subject to the data protection and security requirements applicable to clinical information systems.

Thomas Resch, Senior Physician at the University Clinic for Visceral, Transplant and Thoracic Surgery, emphasised: "Damit sind wir das größte Lebertransplantationszentrum in Österreich". The topographic conditions in Tyrol and the associated longer distances to medical facilities also necessitate digital offerings.

Background: Tyrol's digital strategy

Stefan Deflorian, Commercial Managing Director of tirol kliniken, said: "Das ist ein Pilotprojekt, es sind natürlich sehr viele andere Use-cases denkbar". As the next area, he mentioned cardiac surgery. It is also important "dass die unterschiedlichen Bundesländer auch unterschiedliche Dinge probieren, die dann auch von den anderen übernommen werden könnten".

The background to the development is the strategy pursued in Tyrol: "Digital vor ambulant vor stationär - wir sagen das nicht nur, sondern wir machen es", it was emphasised. Tyrol began more than ten years ago to work on telemedicine applications together with the Tyrolean State Institute for Integrated Care (LIV). With "HerzMobil", the state adopted an established application from Styria, which is primarily aimed at patients with heart failure.

Outlook on further areas of application

"Das hat sich sehr bewährt - wir haben uns das von der Steiermark abgeschaut", it was stated in this regard. The new liver transplantation app builds on these experiences and is intended to improve care for patients in Tyrol's rural areas.

With the project, tirol kliniken is also focusing on greater involvement of those affected in the course of treatment. The app makes it possible to provide complex content in a processed form and to open up an additional contact channel to the treatment team. The aim is to make it easier for patients in Tyrol's valleys to access specialists.

Overall, those responsible see the new application as a building block in a more comprehensive digital strategy in healthcare. It is currently being examined which further areas of application – such as in cardiac surgery – can be derived from the experiences with the pilot project.