COPD

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) affects approximately 120,000 citizens in Scotland and is the second most common reason for emergency hospital admissions. Since May 2020, NHSGGC patients with COPD have been given the opportunity to monitor their symptoms at home by registering to use the NHSGGC COPD Digital Service.

Using their smartphones or other devices, patients have direct access to a range of self-management tools as well as notifications for daily patient reported outcomes. This enables the clinical team to proactively monitor patients remotely. It also enables patients to message their clinician and community respiratory response team in real-time, improving efficiency of daily care, particularly during COVID-19.

The Dynamic Scot project is a collaboration between NHSGGC, the West of Scotland Innovation Hub, Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre, Scottish Government and NHS National Services Scotland and has already seen success in NHSGGC, with over 550 patients regularly using the service and rollout planned for further Boards. Evaluation results have shown a marked decrease in the number of hospital admissions and attendances, as well as improved efficiencies for the clinical service.

In July 2021, the project was awarded the Artificial Intelligence in Health and Care Award by the UK Government. This aims to accelerate the testing, evaluation and increase the impact of AI-driven technologies to help solve clinical and operational challenges across the NHS and care settings, allowing innovation to remain at the heart of improving COPD treatment in Scotland.