Vigi’Fall – apparat ġdid iffinanzjat mill-UE jagħmel il-ħajja tal-anzjani aktar sigura

17 ta’ Ġunju 2013 |

Mill-1,768 każ ta’ korriment rapportati minn anzjani Maltin ta’ 65 sena jew aktar bejn Jannar u April 2012, 312 kienu kkawżati minn waqgħat.

Permezz ta’ teknoloġija u kompetenza Ewropej, il-Konsorzju FallWatch, immexxi mill-kumpanija Franċiża Vigilio SA, żviluppa apparat trijangolari ċkejken imsejħa Vigi’Fall. Dan l-apparat li jintlibes b’mod permanenti, flimkien ma’ infrared sensors u apparat ċentrali li jitwaħħlu fid-dar, iwassal biex ikunu nnotati immedjatament waqgħat serji u b’hekk ikun jista’ jintbagħat tim mediku ta’ emerġenza fl-iqsar ħin possibbli. Fil-fażi li jmiss, imsejħa FallWatch DEMO, se tittejjeb il-funzjonalità tiegħu billi se tiġi integrata funzjoni li timmonitorizza l-qalb. Il-proġetti FallWatch u FallWatch DEMO irċevew bejniethom madwar €2 miljun f’fondi mill-Kummissjoni Ewropea.

“Huwa stmat li aktar minn 20 miljun anzjan li jkunu għalqu l-65 sena jaqgħu tal-anqas darba fis-sena. Il-waqgħat huma fost il-kawżi ewlenin ta’ mewt fost l-anzjani. Għaldaqstant, l-għajnuna medika immedjata hija important ħafna u tista’ tagħmel differenza bejn ħajja u mewt,” saħaq Jean-Eric Lundy, il-fundatur ta’ Vigilio S.A u tabib fit-taqsima tal-emerġenza ġewwa l-isptar Cochin f’Pariġi. “Ta’ spiss jiddaħħlu anzjani fid-dipartiment tal-emerġenza wara li jkunu qattgħu ħin twil mal-art minħabba li ma jkunux jistgħu jsejħu għall-għajnuna. U dan ta’ spiss iwassal għal ħsara fiżika u psikoloġika. Intervent mediku f’waqtu jiżgura li l-waqgħat ma jħallux effett permanenti fuq il-kwalità ta’ ħajja tal-anzjani.”

Din is-soluzzjoni hija bbażata fuq sistema ta’ sensors. Biosensor jintlibes mill-anzjan waqt li sensors oħra mingħajr wires jitwaħħlu madwar id-dar. Jekk l-anzjan jaqa’, minbarra li l-biosensor jibgħat sinjal, jekk is-sensors l-oħra ma jirreġistraw ebda moviment, dawn jibagħtu sinjal ukoll lil call centre permezz ta’ apparat ċentrali. Jekk l-anzjan ma jweġibx għas-sejħa magħmula mill-call centre, membri tal-familja jew tim ta’ emerġenza jintbagħtu fuq il-post tal-inċident immedjatament.

Sabiex issir distinzjoni bejn waqgħat reali u ‘false alarms’, l-apparat huwa mgħammar b’software li janalizza n-natura tal-waqgħa u l-qagħda tal-anzjan. Dan l-apparat, li jaħdem bil-batterija, jintlibes b’mod permanenti u jista’ jintuża ukoll fil-kamra tal-banju. B’hekk min jużah ikollu moħħu mistrieħ li, f’każ ta’ inċident, l-għajnuna ma ddumx ma tasal.

“Il-proġett FallWatch huwa eżempju ċar tal-avvanzi kbar fis-settur tas-saħħa li jistgħu jinkisbu meta riżorsi industrijali Ewropej jaħdmu flimkien”, stqarr Michael Jennings, il-kelliem tal-Kummissjoni Ewropea responsabbli għar-riċerka, ix-xjenza, u l-innovazzjoni. “Din hija t-tip ta’ innovazzjoni li tagħmel differenza fil-ħajja tan-nies, waqt li tikkontribwixxi wkoll għall-kompetittività Ewropea li l-Kummissjoni hija kommessa li tkompli tappoġġja permezz tal-programm ta’ Riċerka u Innovazzjoni ‘Horizon 2020’.”

Further Reading
Unique Vigi’Fall fall detection solution could help save 500,000 hospitalisations and 40,000^[1] premature deaths caused by falls in Europe every year.

Download Leaflet (PDF, 7Mb)

Successful clinical trials and commercial roll-out
The miniaturised Vigi’Fall patch has been successfully trialled in laboratory, hospital, nursing home and domestic environments. Lab trials demonstrated a 90%+ successful detection rate for the biosensor alone without use of the data-fusion software. Trials in real-world environments, which incorporated the data-fusion software, showed an even higher success rate with false alerts practically eliminated.

“We have been involved in trials of the Vigi’Fall solution from the outset and have seen it constantly evolve in terms of performance to a point where false positive and false negative alerts are rare” says Pr. Anne-Sophie Rigaud, head of the gerontology service at Broca Hospital, Paris. “User-comfort has also been an important consideration and the current miniaturised patch is non-intrusive, both from a physical and psychological point of view. Our patients tolerate it well.”

Created in collaboration with Pr. Norbert Noury (INL Lyon), The Vigi’Fall solution came on the market in November 2012. The various components of the solution are manufactured in France, Italy, Germany and UK and then assembled in France. Contracts have already been signed with establishments in France, Portugal, Kuwait and with the international healthcare group Europ Assistance, a partner in the FallWatch Consortium. Other contracts are currently being negotiated with Switzerland, Denmark, Ireland and Lithuania. The home version of the solution will be available in the last quarter of 2013 while the second generation of the device, which will also be adapted to US RF standards, will enter into clinical trials in the US and Europe in September 2013. A commercial version of this new solution is expected to be ready for market at the end of 2014 opening up important new business opportunities. In addition to Europe and the US, several countries in Asia have expressed interest in adopting this unique technology.  It is estimated that 100 qualified jobs will be created in the countries participating in the FallWatch projects in the course of the next 3 years.

Finally, the ability of the second generation device to monitor the wearer’s heartbeat may also lead to new telemedical applications, in particular for cardiac patients and epilepsy suffers that do not respond to pharmacological treatment.

To see the Vigi’Fall solution in action, go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sFhILZ1jmA.