To date, RAPIDE has focused on what can be learned from the recent COVID-19 pandemic. RAPIDE researchers have systematically gathered information from scientific publications that have looked at how the pandemic impacted on regular care, how different groups were affected and how different healthcare systems coped with the additional care demands, looking at the experience in 23 European countries. Interviews were also conducted with stakeholders, such as healthcare providers, policymakers, public health professionals, and patient advocates across seven countries, to learn about their lived experience of the COVID-19 pandemic. There were many important learnings from this work, that will help the RAPIDE team as they develop a portfolio of tools to support healthcare systems in future emergencies. For example, hybrid care and digital tools for healthcare helped to maintain care, but these approaches did not work equally well for all patients or in all healthcare systems. Vulnerable groups, such as older adults, rural populations, and those with low digital literacy, found using these new approaches to care more challenging. Countries with existing digital health systems adapted better than those with less developed infrastructure. Learnings from this work will feed into the development of RAPIDE’s portfolio of tools.
RAPIDE has also started to develop computer models that can help healthcare systems decide how to best use available resources during a health emergency in a way that minimises the impact on regular care. Real-time and short-term prediction models of patient flows into hospitals and bed occupancy can help manage wait lists and distribution of patients within the system between hospitals or into other care settings. A long-term forecasting model that looks at the changing emergency over time and care backlog allows for more tactical and strategic planning over weeks and months. These models will continue to be refined over the project and will ultimately be shared for future use by healthcare systems.
RAPIDE has performed case studies In four countries (The Netherlands, Italy, Slovenia and Malta), in which health systems were mapped from the perspective of policy decisions on hybrid care, and the responsibilities of the main stakeholders for transforming healthcare during emergencies were identified. In depth interviews and focus groups were held to understand perceptions, experiences and needs of patients with diabetes and heart failure regarding hybrid care delivery, as well as of healthcare professionals and informal care givers involved in the care for these patients. These findings are being used in co-creation sessions in the four countries to design the RAPIDE hybrid care models that will be feasibility tested in the next steps of the project,
Training, empowerment and knowledge transfer also have an important impact on healthcare during an emergency. Healthcare managers need to know how to maximise resource value, healthcare professionals need to know how to best deliver hybrid care and the public needs to be empowered to access and engage with hybrid care. To meet these needs, RAPIDE researchers have conducted focus groups and interviews to learn what training is needed and how it can best be delivered to different target groups. This work will continue with training delivery and assessment, ultimately delivering a Communications and Training Toolbox.
