Researchers from the University of Twente, Deventer Hospital and Saxion University of Applied Sciences are working together on a smart solution to a growing problem in healthcare. Patients are being discharged sooner and sooner after major surgery. They leave with a bag full of medication, a leaflet full of instructions, and a lot of uncertainty: Am I taking too much or too little? How can you prevent addiction and ensure effective pain relief? The collaboration led to the development of the PainSafe.
The idea originated somewhere at sea, between Schiermonnikoog and the mainland. Orthopaedic surgeon Dr Ydo Kleinlugtenbelt: "During a conference with general practitioners and specialists on pain medication, everyone recognised the problem. Then I thought, 'There must be a better way.' With current technology, we should be able to develop something that addresses these problems.”
A growing problem
The problem is real. Over the past ten years, the use of oxycodone - a morphine-like drug - has almost quadrupled in the Netherlands. More than a million Dutch people are prescribed the painkiller annually, especially after a major surgery. Ten percent of patients are at risk of addiction.
In the past, patients would stay in the hospital for weeks, where healthcare staff kept a close eye on their medication intake. Now, patients go home after one or two days. Kleinlugtenbelt: "To put it bluntly: you are given a bag with pills and instructions, and then you have to figure it out for yourself. That doesn't always work out well."
More information
Check the website.