Research project In aging societies, the rising prevalence of chronic diseases is straining healthcare systems. To reduce institutional care while maintaining quality, innovative health and care models are urgently needed. Digital self-management tools can alleviate these pressures, but scaling effective innovations across Europe’s diverse healthcare systems remains challenging. SHIFT-EU addresses this by implementing proven cost-effective, evidence-based digital therapeutics in primary care in four countries.
This 3-year project aims to reduce institutional treatment needs, alleviate workforce pressures, and lower costs while improving care quality. By leveraging a CE IIa-certified platform, SHIFT-EU ensures a robust, scalable infrastructure for digital therapeutics. The project will also produce a comprehensive blueprint for implementing digital health solutions across European primary care systems, providing actionable guidance for future innovations. Through collaboration and shared expertise, SHIFT-EU will pave the way for sustainable digital transformation in healthcare across Europe.
SHIFT-EU implements proven cost-effective, evidence-based digital therapeutics for two highly prevalent conditions [i.e., urinary incontinence (URinControl) and dizziness (Vertigo Training, VT)] in primary care in four countries: the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and Sweden. These interventions, validated in randomized trials and cost-effectiveness studies, have already demonstrated success in real-world settings, with 32,000 (URinControl) and 8,000 (VT) users in the Netherlands, respectively.
However, scaling to other countries requires tailored approaches, and seamless care pathways are needed. SHIFT-EU will adopt an ecosystem approach to codesign context-specific implementation strategies with stakeholders in each country. Through varied work plans, we will simultaneously conduct primary implementation studies (Poland, Spain and Sweden) that transform healthcare, and advanced implementation studies (the Netherlands) that embed interventions into standard care pathways.
