17 MARCH 2017, LONDON – In a landmark pilot, digital healthcare company OurPath was commissioned by the NHS North West London Collaboration of Clinical Commissioning Groups to roll out their 12-week online behavioural change programme across several local surgeries in the area. GPs will be able to prescribe the programme – which helps people make changes to their lifestyle through online support and health tracking – to patients living with Type 2 diabetes.
Diabetes is one of the fastest growing threats to our health and to our national health service. It is estimated that there are more than 4 million people living with Type 2 diabetes in the UK. This costs the NHS over £9bn annually, much of it in costs related to the often traumatic complications associated with the disease. Good diabetes management and improving lifestyle factors such as weight and levels of activity has been shown to reduce the risk of those complications.
The OurPath programme is designed to help people change their behaviours and reduce their risk and complications of type 2 diabetes. Delivered online, it combines several tried and tested solutions to help people make long-term changes to their lifestyle by gradually changing their diet, exercise, sleep, thought patterns and behaviours. It is designed with reference to the latest research in behavioural science to make lifestyle change as easy as possible, leveraging the power of technology to help people build healthy habits that stick.
Trial outcomes have been extremely positive, with 83% of people completing the programme, losing approximately 6% of their body weight on average and increasing their activity levels by 22% – both recommended steps to delay the progression of the disease. The pilot aims to replicate these successes, helping patients better manage their disease and ultimately improving their quality of life.
“We truly believe that digital innovation can help address the challenges faced by the NHS,” said OurPath co-founder Chris Edson. “We’re delighted to be working with the North West London CCGs to demonstrate how technology can make behavioural interventions more engaging, more scalable, and more seamlessly integrated into people’s daily lives.”
The pilot is the first of its kind in the UK, and is a great example of how technology and healthcare can be combined to create innovative digital solutions with the potential to significantly improve patient outcomes, while also easing the burden on the NHS funding gap.
“The health needs of the North West London population are changing, as people live longer and a growing number are living with complex, long-term health conditions. We are pleased to be working alongside OurPath in order to find an innovative solution to support our residents to self-care in a way that fits around their lifestyles.” said Abeer Itrakjy, Clinical Programme Manager at the North West London Collaboration of Clinical Commissioning Groups.
About OurPath
OurPath is a digital behavioural change programme, proven to help people change their behaviours and reduce their risk and complications of type 2 diabetes.
