Digital technologies for patients with multiple sclerosis, here is the White Paper

Finding innovative solutions for the path of assistance, diagnosis and treatment of people living with multiple sclerosis: this is the goal of the White Paper ‘Multiple sclerosis and digital technologies: a proposal for a patient journey digitally enhanced’, created by European House-Ambrosetti for Sanofi presented today in Rome. This is an initiative aimed at turning the spotlight on the inevitable digital transformation of healthcare, which has seen a significant acceleration during the Covid-19 pandemic crisis, promoting the adoption of digital-enhanced pathways for people living with multiple sclerosis. “At the beginning of the path that led to this result – explained Marcello Cattani, president and CEO of Sanofi Italia – we wondered about how to explore all the potential and tools offered by new technologies to apply them to the patient journey, or rather to the path diagnosis and treatment of the person with multiple sclerosis considered in its entirety and globally “.” Especially today – he added – it is essential to be able to offer services that bring health closer to citizens, even in situations of physical distance, whether they are support, monitoring, assistance and care. As a company, especially in areas where we have a long experience alongside clinicians and patients, we can and must play a leading role. Because if on the one hand it is essential to maintain the centrality of the patient in all our approaches, we cannot produce appreciable and significant results without a true connection and collaboration between all the actors of the care system “. The White Paper is the result of the reflections emerged during an initiative that involved a multidisciplinary group. In fact, among others, representatives of Aism-Italian Multiple Sclerosis Association, Fism-Italian Multiple Sclerosis Federation and Sin-Italian Society of Neurology contributed to its drafting, as well as Microsoft who has shared its experience in the digitalization of healthcare in other countries as well. “The patient journey proposal for multiple sclerosis, enhanced by digital technologies – underlined Daniela Bianco, partner and head of the Health care area of ​​European House – Ambrosetti – is the result of an integrated and flexible approach, which must take into account not only o of the new technologies available, but also of the specificities of individual patients and of the centers of reference that care for the patients. The dynamism and adaptability of the paths are the answer to very different contexts that exist today in the various Regions. “If the Covid-19 pandemic, since the first months of 2020, has upset and overloaded the Italian health service, with significant implications in the management of many chronic diseases such as multiple sclerosis, the need to implement innovative solutions capable of improving patient care and their therapeutic path is increasingly evident today – the experts note. The document highlights how the pandemic has accelerated the digital transformation of healthcare, generating widespread and transversal awareness and interest in the potential of digital solutions to support diagnostic-therapeutic assistance and rehabilitation paths. In the pandemic, 88% of centers had to cancel or postpone visits During the first pandemic wave, in fact, 91% of the Multiple Sclerosis Centers on the earth orio Nazionale said it had suffered a moderate to severe organizational impact, with 88% of facilities having to cancel or postpone checkups. 75% of patients also had difficulties in accessing rehabilitation services and 45% in outpatient services. In this context, patients, medical staff and social and health referents have had to resort, often in an unscheduled or structural way, to new channels of communication and virtual interaction to ensure continuity of care and assistance. Many have resorted to a simple telephone communication channel, but there has been no lack of experience in the use of more innovative technologies. In fact, 94% of the centers declared that they were able to remotely follow patients who did not require in-person management. Furthermore, 43% of patients confirmed that they had received at least part of the assistance care through telephone consultation services and online visits. Similarly, during the first pandemic wave, 95% of general practitioners and 70% of medical specialists said they were in favor of implementing telemedicine solutions. From the digital, an additional but not a substitute channel for interaction and support for the patient What is proposed in the White Paper is the definition of a model that provides for a structural integration of technological tools, thus allowing greater interaction in real time in the care pathway. In fact, the digitally enhanced patient journey proposal envisages taking charge enhanced by access to a digital platform and a series of software applications, integrated with each other and with specific functions, in response to the needs and criticalities identified, in order to be constantly of added value both for doctors and operators and for the patient and caregiver. A way of taking charge enhanced through an additional channel, but not a substitute, of communication, interaction, support and monitoring, and in this sense it is suggested to put together and strengthen the already existing solutions of a traditional take-over, which also take into consideration the patient’s level of digitalization. Fostering the sharing of data – the experts conclude – also represents a fundamental aspect for improving the patient care path, through the adoption of a cloud strategy that can make it possible to benefit from advanced computing services, from a shared data language. , favoring the possibility of systematizing the large amount of information, currently deriving from multiple sources, thus supporting the development of a connected ecosystem, in which the patient and his clinical representatives can access useful data at any time.