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Completed

NCT Number: NCT03112109

SMARTCARE Project: Deploying Integrated Health & Social Services for Independent Living by Older People

Against the background of the European Innovation Partnership on Active & Healthy Ageing, SmartCare aims to define a common set of standard functional specifications for an open ICT platform enabling the delivery of integrated care to older European citizens.

In the context of SmartCare, a total of 23 regions and their key stakeholders will define a comprehensive set of integration building blocks around the challenges of data-sharing, coordination and communication. Nine regions will then deploy integrated health & social services to combat a range of threats to independent living commonly faced by older people, while the others will prepare for early adoption, possibly in the framework of new ICT PSP projects. In a rigorous evaluation approach, the deployment sites will produce and document much needed evidence on the impact of integrated care, developing a common framework suitable for other regions in Europe. The organisational and legal ramifications of integrated care will be analysed to support long term sustainability and upscaling of the services.

SmartCare services will provide full support to cooperative delivery of care, integrated with self-care and across organisational silos, including essential coordination tools such as shared data access, care pathway design and execution, as well as real time communication support to care teams and multi-organisation access to home platforms. In addition, they will empower all older people according to their mental faculties to take part in effective management of their health, wellness, and chronic conditions, and maintain their independence despite increasing frailty.

The SmartCare services build on advanced ICT already deployed in the pioneer regions, including high penetrations of telecare and telemonitoring home platforms. In SmartCare, these platforms are to be opened to cross-sectorial care teams, improving the ability of older people to better manage their chronic conditions at home and deal with their increasing frailty. System integration will be based, whenever possible, on open standards' multivendor interoperability will be strongly encouraged.

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Key information

Conditions

Frail Elderly Syndrome Cardiovascular Diseases Congestive Heart Failure Falls Prevention Heart Diseases Heart Failure

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Observational

About this study

This trial will evaluate the functions and impacts of the SmartCare pilot services from the point of view of the different principal roles/stakeholders, such as end users (care recipients), voluntary and non-voluntary informal carers, formal care staff/professionals, managers and fund-holders. Evaluation of integrated care service delivery processes (process evaluation) will improve the current scientifically based knowledge base on barriers and facilitators towards integrated care delivery.

Comparators were chosen to be current delivery of health and social care processes ('normal care'), as provided by pilot sites individually. The project uses local scenarios as the comparator in order to enable the evidence generated to contribute to local decision making on using the technologies. Thus, the control groups were as similar as possible to the intervention groups (receiving 'new care'). In addition, a number of possible confounding factors were measured for all participants.

The overall aim of the scientific studies carried out in SmartCare is: To identify the differences induced by implementing ICT supported integrated health and social care.

Any impact that ICT supported integrated health and social care might have on all users will be the subject of analyses according to the framework presented in the MAST model (Kidholm et al. 2012).

In addition, the objectives that will be tested in SmartCare are:

  • Difference in number of contacts to health care.
  • Difference in number of contacts to social care.
  • Differences in use of health care services.
  • Differences in use of social care services.
  • Differences in costs.
  • Differences in organisational aspects caused by implementing ICT supported integrated care.
  • Difference in end-user empowerment.
  • Difference in end-user satisfaction.

Who can participate

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

for end users:

  • Provided with both health and social care.
  • Congestive heart failure: for RSD pilot site.
  • Frail elderly: for Aragon pilot site.

Exclusion criteria

for end users:

  • No exclusion criteria.

Treatment and study plan

'New care'

Other

Frail elderly receiving care within new organisational models delivering integrated healthcare (IHC) supported by ICT infrastructure (electronically shared-care platform) as provided by pilot sites individually.

Primary outcomes

  1. Change in services consumption

    Time frame: Healthcare services consumption measured at individual level, per individual client / citizen / carer, based on differences ('change') between measurements at (a) baseline (month 0), (b) midterm (12 months) and (c) end (24 months) of study

    Change in healthcare and social care services consumption measured based on total count of healthcare services consumption, measured based on total count of number of contacts with healthcare services/professionals

Secondary outcomes

  1. Blood pressure

    Time frame: Blood pressure measured in mmHG, at individual level, per individual client / citizen at baseline, midterm (12 months) and end (24 months) of study

    Blood pressure as part of disease specific health status measurements

  2. Blood glucose

    Time frame: Blood glucose measured in mg/dl, at individual level, per individual client / citizen / carer at baseline, midterm (12 months) and end (24 months) of study

    Blood glucose as part of disease specific health status measurements

  3. Cholesterol

    Time frame: Cholesterol measured in mmol/ltr, at individual level, per individual client / citizen at baseline, midterm (12 months) and end (24 months) of study

    Cholesterol as part of disease specific health status measurements

  4. General health and wellbeing / Indicator for health status

    Time frame: General health and wellbeing (SF 36 v2) measured with questionnaire, at individual level, per individual client / citizen at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    General health and wellbeing based on v2 of the SF 36 questionnaire

  5. Indicator for health status: Barthel

    Time frame: Indicator for health status as measured with Barthel Index measured with questionnaire, at individual level, per individual client / citizen at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    Indicator for health status as measured with Barthel Index

  6. Indicator for health status: Timed up & go

    Time frame: Indicator for health status measured with Timed up and Go test, at individual level, per individual client / citizen at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    Indicator for health status as measured with Timed up and Go test

  7. Quality of Life of family carers: CASP

    Time frame: Quality of Life of family carers measured with CASP-19, at individual level, per carer at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    Quality of Life of family carers, based on levels of Control, Autonomy, Pleasure and Self-realization (with CASP-19 questionnaire)

  8. Anxiety and depression

    Time frame: Anxiety and depression levels in end users Quality of Life of family carers measured with HADS Scale, at individual level, per citizen / client at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    Anxiety and depression according as part of psychological status, based on HADS scale

  9. Depression in elderly

    Time frame: Depression in elderly in end users measured with (GDS-15), at individual level, per citizen / client at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    Depression in elderly as part of psychological status, based on Geriatric Depression Scale-15 (GDS-15)

  10. Isolation

    Time frame: Level of isolation in elderly in end users measured with Perceived Isolation Questionnaire, at individual level, per citizen / client at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    Level of isolation according to Perceived Isolation Questionnaire as part of psychological status

  11. Carer burden

    Time frame: Level of carer burden measured with ZBI in carers measured at individual level, per caregivers at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    Level carer burden according to Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) as part of psychological status

  12. Carer difficulties, satisfaction and management in caring - I

    Time frame: Level of carer difficulties, satisfaction and management in caring measured with CADI in carers measured at individual level, per caregivers at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    Level of carer difficulties, satisfaction and management in caring according to: Carer Assessment of Difficulty Index (CADI)

  13. Carer difficulties, satisfaction and management in caring - II

    Time frame: Level of carer difficulties, satisfaction and management in caring measured with CASI suite in carers measured at individual level, per caregivers at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    Level of carer difficulties, satisfaction and management in caring according to Carer Assessment of Satisfaction Index (CASI)

  14. Carer difficulties, satisfaction and management in caring - III

    Time frame: Level of carer difficulties, satisfaction and management in caring measured with CAMI suite in carers measured at individual level, per caregivers at baseline and end (24 months) of study

    Level of carer difficulties, satisfaction and management in caring according to: Carer Assessment of Management Index (CAMI) as part of psychological status

  15. Death

    Time frame: Death as adverse outcome measure as registered at end of study (24 months)

    Death as adverse outcome measure

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Him SA

Other

Registry information

Official study title

SmartCare Project: Joining up ICT and Service Processes for Quality Integrated Care in Europe

Acronym: SmartCare

Important dates

Study start
2014
Primary completion
2017
Study completion
2017
First posted
Apr 13, 2017
Registry last updated
Aug 20, 2018

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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