Patients having robotic knee surgery at Colchester Hospital are being offered additional support through a specialist phone app.
Extra videos from consultants, additional information about their surgery and support after the operation are some of the features included in the app offered to patients.
Patients can also input their own information, such as their pain and function scores. They can also connect the app to their smartphone or watch to link in their daily step count. This will help feedback to the clinicians, allowing them real-time information.
Consultant Tim Parratt said the app will be a really positive step in helping support patients through the procedure of knee replacement surgery but is also a great way of finding out how recovery is going.
Consultant Tim Parratt
He said: “This is a really exciting step in personalised information bespoke to our patients at ESNEFT. The information through the app has been tailored specifically for us.
“Patients don’t get to interact with their consultant as much as they’d like, but this will be a helpful way to find out more about the surgery beforehand, navigate the admission and then be fully involved in their rehab during the months of recovery.
“Knee surgery can be tough to get through. We hope having helpful reminders about the best exercises to do after the operation and being able to complete questionnaires about pain levels will also help patients on their journey.”
Around 800 patients have partial or full knee replacements every year at Colchester or Ipswich Hospital. Those patients who have the surgery through robotic surgery will be offered access to the app.
Consultant Mabs Alam
Consultant Mabs Alam added: “We know most patients like to have as much information as possible, so being able to take a tour of the surgical space and additional information about what they’ll experience afterwards is very important.
“Having the added benefit of gathering essential data from patients will also be valuable in how we manage patients in the future. Although we have a follow-up appointment with a patient six months after surgery, it will be fascinating to find out how they continue to adapt to their new knee after they’ve been discharged from our care.”
Smith+Nephew has worked with digital health experts Huma to create the app, which has been tailored for ESNEFT patients.
Screenshot of the app with mocked-up patient information
Ekta Patel, account director – Companion App, MedTech, Huma said: “At Huma, we see ourselves as part of a movement to deliver digital care through collaborations, so we are very excited to be working with Smith+Nephew and ESNEFT.
“Our app will help engage and empower knee-replacement patients. They will receive educational content and virtual rehabilitation guidance to assist them as they navigate their care journey. At the same time, clinicians will have greater insights into the care their patients need from the data collected via the app and validated patient-reported outcome measures. This can help transform day-to-day care and long-term insights.
“We are very much looking forward to supporting more ESNEFT patients and their clinical care teams through the Huma platform.”
Si Tarry, Managing Director Smith+Nephew UK, Ireland and Nordics, added: “We are proud to partner with the team at ESNEFT around innovative technologies, both in the operating room through CORI surgical robotics, and in supporting patients before and after surgery with the Huma remote patient monitoring platform. Making more possible for the NHS, NHS staff and patients through innovation and data information is key to the success of NHS and industry collaboration.”
Robotic knee surgery is performed at Colchester Hospital and not currently at Ipswich Hospital, but is something that may be offered in the future.
Find out more about robotic knee surgery on the East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust website.
The app is a medical device manufactured and supplied by Huma Therapeutics Limited.
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