New ways for self-management knowledge to yield up care
New SkyCare aims to establish the first pan-European virtual hospital, providing patients safe, comfortable home-centered treatment through telemonitoring and remote medical assistance. The project will develop a Medical Service Centre to provide hospitals with a 24/7 care-service that monitors and guides chronically ill patients with diabetes type II and chronic heart failure.
Origins
Increasing healthcare costs and ageing populations are straining the current healthcare delivery model. We need more patient-centric disease management solutions, as well as treatments that can be carried out at home. SkyCare envisions the first scalable European virtual hospital, working from a centralised facility with the mandate of payers, healthcare providers and tech developers, to service patients in several countries at once.
Team
Zilveren Kruis-Achmea will handle oversight of the project, reporting to the steering group and EIT Health. Philips will develop an open-source structure to connect various consumer eHealth tools to a personal health record. Eurocross will set up a Medical Service Centre, designing procedures and training personnel. Erasmus MC and Karolinska Institutet will supply eHealth tools and patient groups. Eurapco and the Medical University of Lodz will explore business models and reimbursement systems.
The project
SkyCare is the first European initiative to establish a virtual hospital that will be able to service patients independently of their home country. The initial focus will be on patients in the Netherlands and Sweden afflicted by diabetes type II and chronic heart failure.
The goal of the initiative is to create a scalable Medical Service Centre, which can be expanded to other countries and can be used for other medical conditions.
This is achieved by a flexible and open IT architecture with three unique features:
- It connects existing eHealth tools and patients to an open central scalable platform.
- It adds new algorithms to analyse the data.
- It monitors the data via a new 24/7 Medical Service Centre, which contacts patients and healthcare providers when necessary, and enables research.
Activities are divided into multiple work packages, including:
- IT-integration of eHealth self-management tools;
- drawing up data security and GDPR-proof frameworks;
- establishing the physical medical service centre and protocols;
- preparing two medical pilots with a total of 300 patients at Erasmus MC, Rotterdam (The Netherlands) and Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm (Sweden).
Impact
SkyCare will have a positive impact on cost reduction, quality of care and accessibility because:
- eHealth tools have been known to inspire more healthy lifestyles and self-management;
continuous monitoring of vital health signs enabled by eHealth tools has been proven to help set more - accurate diagnoses and initiate the proper follow-up actions;
- patients enjoy the comfort of access to their own health data and easier remote access to health professionals.
Why this is an EIT Health project
This project is an excellent example of the EIT Health Focus Area of “Bringing Care Home”, and it promises the benefits envisioned by that focus area, including improved care due to constant health monitoring and empowerment of patients to handle their own care.
We believe that the only way to keep high-quality healthcare affordable and accessible to every layer of the population is by enabling and developing the field of home care.
Zilveren Kruis
I like all those new fancy monitoring apps and devices, but who’s got time to look at all that data?
Philips
We’ve been dealing with the logistics of care in a foolish way for too long. SkyCare brings back the opportunity for me to focus on the things that urgently require my attention as a clinician.
Erasmus MC
Members
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/achmea-150x150-1.png)
CLC/InnoStars: Belgium-Netherlands
Partner classification: Business
Insurance company since 1811 with co-operative background. We serve about 8 million customers in 6 in Europe countries and in Australia. Gross written premium was 20 billion in 2013. There are 15,000 employees in The Netherlans and 4,000 elsewhere.
Achmea Insurance Company
Achmea Insurance Company, Handelsweg 2, 3707 NH Zeist, Netherlands
Key Activities in Social Innovation
Payers
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/achmea-150x150-1.png)
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/rise-research-institutes-of-sweden-150x150-1.png)
CLC/InnoStars: Scandinavia
Partner classification: Business, Research
Partner type: Associate Partner
RISE Research Institutes of Sweden is a network of research and technology organizations. In global cooperation with academia, enterprise and society, we create value, growth and competitiveness through research excellence and innovation.
RISE Research Institutes of Sweden
RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Mäster Samuelsgatan 60, 111 21 Stockholm, Sweden
Key Activities in Corporate Innovation
Pharma, Med Tech, ICT, Consumer products, Nutrition
Key Activities in Business Creation
Technology Transfer, Business coaching, Testing & Validation
Key Activities in Education
Entrepreneurship training
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/rise-research-institutes-of-sweden-150x150-1.png)
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/missing-logo-17-July-ÔÇô-47.png)
CLC/InnoStars: Belgium-Netherlands
Partner classification: Education, Research, Hospital / University Hospital
Erasmus University Medical Center Rotterdam (Erasmus MC) is the largest university medical center in The Netherlands with around 16,500 employees, and a top referral hospital for a region of about five million inhabitants. A unique infrastructure bringing multidisciplinary research and healthcare together at one location allows Erasmus MC to excel in fundamental research, fast translation of findings into the clinic including first-in-man testing and clinical implementation, and epidemiological studies.
Technical university medical center: Technology is at the core of the new strategy. Erasmus MC focuses on the use of technology and data science to foster innovation in a variety of fields – from medical instruments and devices, minimally invasive surgery, imaging and image analysis, information technology and smart data technology to artificial intelligence, machine learning and biomedical technology.
Erasmus University Medical Centre Rotterdam
Erasmus University Medical Centre Rotterdam, Dr. Molewaterplein 40, 3015 GD Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Key Activities in Research and Developement
Life Sciences, Social sciences / health economics, Clinical research
Key Activities in Social Innovation
Healthcare provision
Key Activities in Business Creation
Technology Transfer
Key Activities in Education
Medical faculties, Healthcare professional education/training
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/missing-logo-17-July-ÔÇô-47.png)
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/missing-logo-17-July-ÔÇô-49.png)
CLC/InnoStars: Belgium-Netherlands
Partner classification: Business
The Eurapco Alliance is a unique and strong partnership of leading European mutual insurance companies which work together to find common solutions to the new challenges of the changing world.
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/missing-logo-17-July-ÔÇô-49.png)
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/karolinska-institutet.png)
CLC/InnoStars: Scandinavia
Partner classification: Education, Research
Partner type: Core Partner
Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical Universities. Our mission is to contribute to the improvement of human health through research and education. Our research covers the entire medical field, from basic molecular biological research, to clinical epidemiology and nursing science. Since 1901 the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet has selected the Nobel laureates in Physiology or Medicine. With our close relationship to the clinical world, a well-established infrastructure, a unique innovation system and financial stability, Karolinska Institutet has excellent prerequisites for sustaining high-quality research and education.
Key Activities in Corporate Innovation
Pharma, Med Tech, Diagnostics, Imaging, Nutrition
Key Activities in Social Innovation
Healthcare provision
Key Activities in Business Creation
Incubation, Technology Transfer, Business coaching, Testing & Validation
Key Activities in Education
Entrepreneurship training, Medical faculties, Healthcare professional education/training
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/karolinska-institutet.png)
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/medical-university-lodz-150x150-1.png)
CLC/InnoStars: InnoStars
Partner classification: Education, Research
Partner type: Core Partner
MUL is among the largest state-owned medical Universities in Poland. It has reached a leading position in the following research areas: immunology, molecular biology, genetics of homeostasis disorders, oncology, hypertension and endocrinology. Within the last two years, young researchers from MUL were considered leaders in areas such as cardiology, oncology, immunology and dermatology.
Medical University of Łódź
Medical University of Łódź, Kościuszki 4, 90-419 Łódź, Poland
Key Activities in Corporate Innovation
Med Tech, Diagnostics
Key Activities in Social Innovation
Healthcare provision
Key Activities in Business Creation
Technology Transfer, Testing & Validation
Key Activities in Education
Entrepreneurship training, Medical faculties, Healthcare professional education/training
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/medical-university-lodz-150x150-1.png)
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Philips-150x150.png)
CLC/InnoStars: Belgium-Netherlands
Partner classification: Business
Partner type: Associate Partner
At Philips, our purpose is to improve people’s health and well-being through meaningful innovation. We aim to improve 2.5 billion lives per year by 2030, including 400 million in underserved communities.
We see healthcare as a connected whole. Helping people to live healthily and prevent disease. Giving clinicians the tools they need to make a precision diagnosis and deliver personalized treatment. Aiding the patient's recovery at home in the community. All supported by a seamless flow of data.
As a technology company, we – and our brand licensees – innovate for people with one consistent belief: there’s always a way to make life better.
Philips Electronics Nederland B.V.
Philips Electronics Nederland B.V., Boschdijk 525, 5622 Eindhoven, Netherlands
Key Activities in Corporate Innovation
Med Tech, ICT
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Philips-150x150.png)
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Region-Stockholm-150x150.png)
CLC/InnoStars: Scandinavia
Partner classification: Municipality / City, Hospital / University Hospital
Partner type: Core Partner
Region Stockholm is one of Europe's largest healthcare providers, offering everything from telephone advice about self-care to advanced specialist care at the university hospital.
Key Activities in Corporate Innovation
Pharma, Med Tech, ICT, Diagnostics, Imaging, Nutrition
Key Activities in Social Innovation
Healthcare provision, Payers
Key Activities in Business Creation
Testing & Validation
Key Activities in Education
Healthcare professional education/training
![](https://eithealth.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Region-Stockholm-150x150.png)