September 28, 2021 – All those with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) now can have access to the RESPIPLUS™ Living Well with COPD self-care resources through the Aetonix aTouchAway® digital platform.
More than 2 million Canadians aged 35 and older are living with COPD, a debilitating condition that impacts every element of life for its sufferers. COPD is the second most common reason for hospital admissions (after giving birth) and has the highest re-admission rate of any chronic disease in Canada.
The partnership between RESPIPLUS and Aetonix that has officially launched today makes available a process of care combining leading educational resources for people with COPD and a digital platform that can dramatically improve patient outcomes. This is done through virtual communications, remote patient management, and better management of clinical workflows. Patients using this new digital platform will benefit from the highest standard of care regardless of where they are in their journey, starting with a special follow-up post-hospital discharge, followed by in-depth evaluation protocols and proper education and support responding to their needs and priorities.
“Physicians and health care systems require an effective and more efficient platform to provide the best care to this (COPD) population. Aetonix will help us do this” said Dr Jean Bourbeau, a world renown respirologist at the McGill University Health Centre and the founder of RESPIPLUS.
Using the aTouchAway® platform in conjunction with RESPIPLUS Living Well with COPD resources, patients will be able to partner with their care team to obtain optimal care digitally. A 2020 survey by Canada Health Infoway showed 84% of Canadians want to use technology to better manage their health and 90% want technology that gives them more control over their health.
“aTouchAway® is the right solution to deliver the Living Well with COPD program seamlessly and successfully to significantly improve patient outcomes,” says Michel Paquet, CEO and Founder of Aetonix.
The ability to monitor COPD symptoms remotely through a platform such as aTouchAway® can significantly improve both patient satisfaction and outcomes. An analysis of remote patient monitoring studies for chronic conditions including COPD published earlier this year showed this approach can help reduce the need for in-hospital acute care.
Dr. Bourbeau and the team at RESPIPLUS, the non-profit providers of the Living Well with COPD educational resources, have worked successfully over the last 20 years to improve patient care and promote patient self-management. This has been demonstrated with more than 40 research publications showing improvements in patient self-management, reduced hospital admissions and costs.
“This initiative could not have been launched at a more key and pertinent time for our COPD population, who have been underserved in this country for many years”, explains Maria Sedeno, Executive Director at RESPIPLUS.
About Aetonix:
Aetonix is changing lives daily with its virtual care platform, aTouchAway®, which provides telehealth, care pathways and remote patient monitoring to optimize connected health. Its face-to-face communication platform is revolutionizing the way families, healthcare professionals and patients receive care. Over 250 hospitals and tens of thousands of patients use Aetonix globally. For more information on the Living Well with COPD care pathway, please visit: aetonix.com/copd-care-pathway-lwwcopd/
About RESPIPLUS:
The Living Well with COPD self-management program by RESPIPLUS™ was created to help patients affected by the disease learn skills to adopt healthy lifestyle behaviours. The program offers a series of learning modules with interactive tools and videos that explore topics, such as managing stress and anxiety, preventing symptoms and saving energy and being healthy with COPD. Medical experts, in collaboration with patients, created this comprehensive program. For more information, please visit: livingwellwithcopd.com
