Helse i Hardanger (HiH) is a multidisciplinary, non-profit company that collaborates with Helse Bergen HF on concentrated treatment for patients with chronic health conditions - back pain, COPD, mental health difficulties, long COVID, and type 2 diabetes. Youwell has been an innovation partner since 2020.
The challenge
Patients with chronic health conditions often need long-term follow-up, but traditional services tend to be built around either short clinical stays or ongoing outpatient check-ups - rarely both in a connected way. HiH wanted a treatment format that mobilises the patient's own resources, with a short time in the institution and a long period for preparation and follow-up, without losing continuity between the phases.
How Youwell addressed the challenge
Together, Youwell and HiH have developed a digital platform that supports the entire treatment pathway, in three phases: Preparation, with outpatient assessment, a clarifying conversation, and an introductory evening; Change, a 4-day concentrated group stay with multidisciplinary treatment; and Maintenance, with digital home follow-up where clinicians track progress and results over time. The platform is used for assessment, dialogue and motivation, structured collection of questionnaires, learning, and data collection for professional development, research, and quality assurance. Youwell has been responsible for adapting, managing, and operating the platform and for designing and developing the patients' web app, and has advised on the development of the digital interventions.
Results customers experience
- Significant functional improvement and reduced fatigue in the treatment groups, shown across several hundred completed patient pathways
- Patients gain greater knowledge, understanding, and mastery of their own health situation
- Reduced time for healthcare staff on follow-up, with fast access to data and a good overview of the pathway
- Data capture makes it possible to document whether the treatment actually works
- More patients return to work
Quote
“Based on treatment groups involving several hundred patients, HiH has found that the concentrated change stay together with the Youwell solution gives the patient a better understanding of their own health and situation. The solution reduces the time spent following up patients, gives faster access to data, less time spent documenting, and a good overview of the patient pathway. Overall, we see that with the treatment programme and use of the digital platform, we achieve better targeted use of healthcare funding, more people back in work, and documented effect.”
- Janiche Buanes Heltne, CEO, Helse i Hardanger