Understanding one’s own affliction is no easy task, and medical professionals are often the ones responsible of educating patients and caregivers alike. Patient education is an effective way to increase patient engagement in their own health. This, in turn, has been shown to help achieve the quadruple aim of healthcare, which is to:
(1) improve patient outcomes,
(2) improve patient experience,
(3) reduce costs, and
(4) improve the providers’ experience in their work [1].

With the development of digital technologies, numerous technologies such as online platforms, big data, live streaming, and artificial intelligence (AI) are leading the transformation of health/medical information and are bringing new models for healthcare information management, as evidenced by recent studies [1], [2].

One way to enable a more tailored and individual centered approach, thus making it better, involves using AI in a way that was not thoroughly explored so far. By creating a Digital Twin (DT), i.e. a virtual representation of a patient, it is easier to understand and present a detailed analysis regarding the evolution of their disease and their available options. Educating patients regarding their health conditions should be a priority in the medical field.

In the above context, the RENEW European Project (Reshaping data-driven smart healthcare to optimize resources and personalize care for hypertensive patients through AI and digital twin models) is targeting personalized data-driven smart healthcare to benefit hypertensive older adults, their caregivers, and their medical practitioners. It aims to develop a healthcare platform that uses AI models to learn from the remote medical monitoring of patients, so that it can produce their Digital Twin. Through the platform, prognosis, prevention, as well as the cost of treatment can be improved, all the while creating a better doctor-patient relationship, and help enhance knowledge regarding this affliction for both patients and medical personnel. At least 126 participants among which 60 patients with their caregivers and medical professionals will be involved for six months pilots in Poland, Slovenia and Italy. This will allow the collection of data needed to develop the digital twin model that will continuously evolve over the course of the project and beyond.

References:
[1] Johnson, A. M. et al., (2023). A systematic review of the effectiveness of patient education through patient portals, JAMIA Open, Volume 6, Issue 1, April 2023. https://doi.org/10.1093/jamiaopen/ooac085
[2] Guo F, Zhang X and Lee P (2023) Editorial: Digital information for patient education. Front. Public Health 11:1211285. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1211285

Keywords: Patient education, digital twins, university-industry cooperation.