What do people with asthma think about mHealth?
The myAirCoach project aims to develop an asthma monitoring system using personalised mHealth, and is funded under the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme. Asthma UK has helped facilitate surveys and focus groups of people with asthma and their healthcare professionals to inform the development of this system – the results of which form one of the project’s publicly-available deliverables.
What areas of digital technology could help transform asthma?
Asthma UK: Smart Asthma report (2017)
Our Smart asthma report highlights the opportunity for smart inhalers to support people in managing their asthma, and the requirements for widespread adoption of smart inhalers in the context of the NHS.
Asthma UK: Connected Asthma report (2016)
Our Connected asthma report highlights how asthma is ideally placed to be transformed by technology and considers some of the developing innovations – from smart inhalers, wearables and health apps through to predictive algorithms to identify those people most at risk of an asthma attack.
Download our report to read our full recommendations.
What evidence is there on self-management for asthma?
The National Institute for Health Research commissioned a systematic overview of the evidence on self-management support for 14 long-term conditions, including asthma. This involved quantitative meta-reviews and qualitative meta-reviews of the evidence on self-management, with the results showing that asthma has one of the best evidence bases.
What studies have assessed health apps in asthma?
Two systematic reviews have considered a number of available apps and the research evidence of their use. They highlight that there are substantial quality issues around apps developed in recent years, and variability in their clinical effectiveness.
Additional guidance
- Office of Life Sciences: Innovation pathway for NHS products (2016) - This guide gives an overview of the innovation pathway for products to be used by the NHS.
- MHRA: Medical device stand-alone software including apps (2016) – guidance from the Medicines and Healthcare Products regulatory body (MHRA) on software development with regulation in mind.
Additional reports
- Nuffield Trust: The digital patient (2016) - reviews the evidence that exists on digital technology and its impact on patients in primary care and the NHS.
- Accelerated Access Review: final report (2016) - Sets out recommendations to speed up access to innovative healthcare and technologies, to improve efficiency and outcomes for NHS patients.
- Making IT Work: Harnessing the Power of Health Information Technology to Improve Care in England (2016) - Report of the National Advisory Group on Health Information Technology in England
- Digital Health in the UK: An industry study for the Office of Life Sciences (2015) - One of a series of reports reflecting work commissioned by Office of Life Sciences in March 2015 on key healthcare and life science industry segments in the United Kingdom.
- Royal College of Physicians: National Review of Asthma Deaths (2015) - Why asthma still kills is the National Review of Asthma Deaths' (NRAD) first national investigation of asthma deaths in the UK and the largest study worldwide to date.
Other organisations
- NESTA - Nesta is an innovation foundation with a mission to help people and organisations bring great ideas to life
- Digital Health and Care Alliance (DHACA) - DHACA is a non-profit sector-led organisation that furthers the cause of digital health and care systems in the UK and Europe, championing scalability and interoperability
- MedCity - MedCity is a collaboration between the Mayor of London and the capital’s three Academic Health Science Centres - Imperial College Academic Health Science Centre, King’s Health Partners, and UCL Partners. Launched in April 2014 to promote and grow the world-leading life sciences cluster of England’s greater south east, it is promoting life sciences investment, entrepreneurship and industry in the region
- Innovate UK - Innovate UK is the UK's innovation agency. They work with people, companies and partner organisations to find and drive the science and technology innovations that will grow the UK economy.
- The Farr Institute of Health Informatics Research - The Farr Institute is part of the UK’s vision to become a global leader in health data science by accelerating the understanding of disease and improving health and care for patients and the public.
- Organisation for the Review of Care & Health Applications (ORCHA) - ORCHA’s main purpose is to carry out independent and impartial reviews of health and care related apps and to present this information clearly through its website and professional platforms
