Brussels, 5 May 2023 - The European Federation of Allergies and Airways Diseases (EFA) awarded last week the first edition of the EFA Patients’ Digital Prize for e-health technologies for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) care. Whether they are connected medical devices, telemedicine, e-health apps or digital health platforms, chronic respiratory disease patients need to be at the core of the technologies that support them self-managing their care and getting support from their healthcare professionals. This was the principle behind the work of the jury1, which selected one winner in each of the three competition categories: AsthmaTuner by Medituner AB won in the best digital technology for asthma care, RespiraSense by PMD Solutions triumphed in the best digital technology for COPD care category, and NuvoAir Home from NuvoAir earned the award for best digital technology for both asthma and COPD care.
“We are impressed by the level of commitment to patients’ empowerment demonstrated by the winners of the EFA award. Thanks to them, we now have proofs that it is possible, ethical and efficient to embed the patients’ input throughout the whole cycle of digital care development. We hope this award serves encouraging the digital health sector to work together with patient organisations to develop solutions that create more open, inclusive, collaborative and patient-centred healthcare”, says Marcia Podestà, EFA President. The applicants for the EFA Patients’ Digital Prize fulfilled a thorough questionnaire that served to evaluate the development process and assess their solutions against six crucial criteria: accessibility, partnership with healthcare professionals, convenience, support and security, prevention, and equity.
RespiraSense, from PMD Solutions, is an accurate, motion tolerant and continuous respiratory rate monitor that measures chest and abdomen movement associated with the mechanics of breathing. “By working in partnership with payers, providers and patients, we've been able to co-create and manage service that empowers patients to be a key partner in the management of their condition while equally empowering clinicians with the early warning of exacerbation, all the while removing the technology burden from the Healthcare System”, said Myles Murray, PMD Solutions Founder and CEO.
Image by EFA/Elio Geramani
The prize is part of DIG_IT, EFA’s Digital Information Technology Project, started in 2022 to provide a deeper understanding of the benefits, barriers, and concerns around digital health for asthma and COPD patients, as well as to develop insights into the patient digital journey in respiratory health. EFA surveyed 2 nearly 1000 asthma and COPD patients in five European countries and the findings have been translated into the DIG_IT Report: Asthma and COPD Patients’ Digital Journey in Europe, with patient recommendations for policymakers, academia, and the technology sector.
The DIG_IT Report was funded with unrestricted grants from EFA’S Sustainable Corporate Partners Astra Zeneca, Chiesi, MSD, OM Pharma and Roche. The prize is being made possible thanks to unrestricted grants from EFA’s Sustainable Corporate Partners Chiesi and Roche.
All the applicants acknowledged the Terms of Reference for the competition, that can be read in the prize web page. The recordings of the awarding ceremony are available on EFA Youtube channel.
