HomeCare@COPD will improve intensive care at home for people with lung-disease by using patient insights to enhance RAS-Q, the so-called “lung in a backpack”. The world’s first portable respiratory assist device for long-term COPD treatment, RAS-Q was developed with support from EIT Health. This project will make the product even better suited to home use.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a progressive, life threatening lung disease characterised by breathlessness and coughing. There are 250 million COPD patients worldwide, and it is the fourth most common cause of death, responsible for 3 million fatalities a year. HomeCare@COPD aims to take advantage of the innovative RAS-Q device to help improve all proccesses neccessary to increase quality of life for the COPD patient population.

Team

HomeCare@COPD is led by Universitätsklinikum Aachen, a modern centre for high-performance medicine, and RWTH Aachen, which provides project management knowledge and clinical research. Universite Grenoble Alpes is specialised in the treatment of COPD patients, and Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, a partner university of RWTH, is well-known for the supervision of animal trials. Enmodes GmbH, developer of RAS-Q, provides deep scientific knowledge and business development experience.

The project

This project seeks to use patient input to improve the experience of home users of RAS-Q, which was developed in 2017 with EIT Health support. Described as a “lung in a backpack”, RAS-Q is a device to provide respiratory assistance and is specifically designed for long-term treatment of COPD patients. Unlike previous oxygenators, the wearable device is able to mimic the pulmonary function beyond mere oxygenation and decarboxylation. Its extremely low resistance and compliance allow for a passive lung substitute without the necessity of a blood pump.

The long-term goal of RAS-Q has always been to transition COPD patients safely from hospitals to homecare. To achieve this, HomeCare@COPD generates feedback and insights from COPD patients. Based on these findings, peripherals, including the carrier system, are developed to optimise the product so it better meets the demands of patients.

Additionally, the project evaluates the long-term durability and optimal anticoagulation strategy, in-vitro and in-vivo, taking necessary steps to allow for homecare treatment. HomeCare@COPD aims to improve all proccesses neccessary to increase quality of life for the COPD patient population.

Impact

By improving on the RAS-Q innovation, HomeCare@COPD can allow for homecare for the large cohort of COPD patients. The project empowers patients to improve their own care through interactions with researchers. It can dramatically improve the quality of life for patients and their families because it gives patients greater independence. It also helps patients, as well as the medical system and payers, by significantly reducing hospital stays.

Why this is an EIT Health project

HomeCare@COPD and the RAS-Q product it seeks to improve promise to increase the possibilities of homecare for COPD patients, which is in keeping with the EIT Health Focus Area of “Bringing Care Home”. Because it offers improved treatment of people with COPD, this innovation is also in line with the Focus Area of improving care pathways.

External Partner

• Enmodes GmbH