Keep track of vital signs from the comfort of your home

Smart technology used at home has the ability to make clinical studies more convenient and valuable for people participating, healthcare providers and pharmaceutical companies. In a collaborative project, Health Works are testing and developing how the management of connected devices can be optimised for all involved.

Healthcare is changing drastically as more and more can be done at home or on the go. Digital applications and smart, connected devices make it possible for people to measure and track, predict and be more in control of their own health.

This type of technology also has many benefits when it comes to clinical studies. Today, people who are participating in clinical studies need to frequently visit hospitals to follow up and track vital signs. This can be inconvenient for those participating, as well as time consuming for the healthcare professionals leading the studies. Geographic location and available time also limits who is able to participate.

The R&D and digital innovation teams at AstraZeneca are currently developing a system that will make it possible for people to participate in clinical studies from home. With the help of a smartphone app and different connected devices, participants are able to measure vital signs such as blood pressure and oxygen levels themselves and thereby become more active and engaged, with medical professionals following up remotely. The objective of moving part of clinical studies to people’s home is to enable a more frequent collection of data and creating a more convenient and valuable experience - for people participating and healthcare providers.

To make sure the overall experience and digital applications are designed in a way that is valuable to everyone involved, Health Works will work with other teams within AstraZeneca who are developing the technology, as well as people who have participated in clinical studies and healthcare professionals.

This is Health Works first project focusing on smart devices at home - an area with endless potential that we will be exploring a lot more going forward.