Siva, R.

Integrated care has been increasingly advocated as an approach to promote better coordination of services and quality of care at different levels. In this study, views were elicited from different users of the healthcare system (patients, informal carers and healthcare professionals) in four European countries. The views pertained to current states of care and the role that remote patient monitoring and telehealth in general can play to facilitate effective implementation of integrated care.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a growing health concern worldwide. Telehealth can facilitate integrated COPD care by providing an opportunity for remote monitoring, early diagnosis and clinical intervention. A design for a telehealth-based system called Wearable Sensing and Smart Cloud Computing for Integrated Care to COPD Patients with Co-morbidities (WELCOME) has been proposed. This study identifies patients', informal carers' and HCPs' acceptance of and requirements for the WELCOME system in four European countries: the United Kingdom (UK), Ireland, Greece and Netherlands.