Finnish digital health startup Popit and global healthcare engagement firm Ashfield Engage have announced a collaboration to improve patient adherence.

Popit’s monitoring technology, and Ashfield Engage’s patient support programme have been brought together to provide personalised support to patients on oral solid dosage (OSD) treatments.

The Popit Sense device is attached to a pill sheet and uses patented technology to monitor missed doses and send alerts to patients via a smartphone app. Data is also transmitted to healthcare providers such as Ashfield Engage, allowing them to easily identify which patients require extra support.

As well as providing support through the app, Ashfield Engage, part of UDG Healthcare plc, will leverage its expert call centre teams to reach out to patients and discuss any challenges with their medication.

WHY IT MATTERS

Medication non-adherence in patients leads to substantial worsening of disease, death and increased health care costs.

This partnership allows Ashfield to focus on the patients who need support most, to encourage adherence. 

THE LARGER CONTEXT

Digital tools are increasingly being used to increase patient adherence. Popit’s technology is already being leveraged by many large pharmaceutical organisations, including Pfizer, Almirall and Novartis.

Meanwhile, Italian startup PatchAi recently announced it has joined forces with pharma giant Roche to launch a digital solution to improve adherence of patients affected by oncological diseases.

Last year, UK-based Elucid Digital Health launched a solution to aid adherence in clinical trials that automatically dispenses medication through its intelligent Pill - Connect cap, which fits on a standard pill bottle.

ON THE RECORD

Ian Riches, global vice president, patient solutions at Ashfield Engage, said: “Prior to Popit’s technology, a large group of OSD patients were not getting the support they needed. While the majority of patients are adherent, those with a need for support can now be quickly identified and we can engage with them in a way that was previously not possible, which is really exciting.

“While typically patient data is only collected up to the point of prescription, we can now support patients throughout their treatment in real-time. By partnering with Popit we have a digital solution that enables rapid, personalised support to increase patient adherence and significantly improve patients’ health and wellbeing in the long term.”

Timo Heikkilä, COO and cofounder of Popit, said: “Our solution provides a wealth of invaluable data for healthcare providers, and pharmaceutical organisations and we have seen excellent results following its adoption.

“By partnering with Ashfield Engage, we can now advance that service, and provide not only the data, but the direct follow up support to those patients in need. We are thrilled about this collaboration and look forward to supporting the large patient population reliant on OSD treatments. We see this as a really important step towards building better, more connected healthcare solutions that truly benefit patients’ health.”