Donations have enabled us to fund the trial of a new digital solution to help improve outcomes for cardiology patients after a procedure.

The Cardiology Team at Leeds Teaching Hospitals provide a regional service to over 3 million people, investigating and treating heart rhythm disorders. The most common heart rhythm problem is called Atrial Fibrillation, which can negatively impact a person’s quality of life, causing breathlessness, fatigue and even increase the risk of a stroke. After a procedure it can be common for patients to experience these recurring symptoms, and as a result they need to get back in contact with the hospital team. It can then be a long process for the patient to monitor these symptoms, have an assessment and then plan for any further treatment.

We spoke with Dr Ramesh Nadarajah, a Cardiology Registrar at Leeds Teaching Hospitals, about this new innovative technology.

“Technology has significantly improved over recent years and there are now apps on phones that can support patients remotely. FibriCheck is a medical smartphone application that can be used remotely to detect Atrial Fibrillation and results are measured by placing a finger on the smartphone camera. This software enables patients to record their heart rate, rhythm, symptoms and blood pressure readings wherever they are.

These results would then digitally go back to our team at the hospital and follow ups would be sent out patients. This new technology enables us to have a more patient-centred approach to our service, as it doesn’t require the patients to travel to the hospital to collect and return monitoring equipment and we are hopeful we will be able to get relevant tests and results to patients quicker.”

In the next few weeks, the Cardiology Team will go live with their trial and will be collecting data over the next three to six months to monitor the success of the new application.

“Over the next few months, we will be looking at a number of things, like how many recordings we are receiving, the correlation between these symptoms and the heart rhythm, how patients find using the app, and ultimately whether we are reducing the number of clinical appointments and hospitalisations after procedures. We need to ensure this new pathway is accessible for all patients so we will be making a full evaluation at the end of this trial to ensure it is improving patient experience.

As a Doctor in Leeds, I am always looking at how we can improve our care to our patients and with the support of Leeds Hospitals Charity, it enables us to constantly be able to bring novel innovation into practice and ultimately improve our patient care. We are hopeful that this new digital solution will improve the experience for patients with atrial fibrillation in Leeds.”