An independent randomised controlled trial has found that a remote monitoring platform developed by patientMpower, a Dublin-based digital health company, reduced health service costs by 92 percent and cut outpatient appointments by 80 percent. The trial was conducted by researchers at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust and The University of Manchester, who have worked with patientMpower on technology-enabled care pathways since 2020.

The study was designed to safely reduce routine outpatient visits while maintaining care quality, and was supported by UK government funding aimed at accelerating the scaling of patient-focused innovation.

"Today over 40% of people in Ireland live with a long-term condition, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes or asthma," said Eamonn Costello, chief executive of patientMpower. "The predicted 175% surge in Ireland's over 65-year-olds will dramatically increase demand on ambulatory care over the next two decades."

Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust has since renegotiated its agreement with patientMpower, extending use of the platform across additional care pathways with more than 1,000 patients now under management. The technology has also been integrated with Epic, the trust's electronic health record system, embedding remote monitoring more directly into existing clinical workflows.

patientMpower was founded by Costello in 2015 following his experience caring for his father, and is based at The Digital Hub in Dublin. The company's technology is already used across seven countries, supporting remote monitoring in conditions including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, where a separate trial recorded an 82 percent reduction in hospitalisations.

The structural driver behind the Manchester results is mounting pressure on outpatient capacity across health systems facing rising rates of long-term condition management, with remote monitoring positioned as a way to shift routine review away from in-person clinic slots without compromising oversight.

For the sector, the trial results reinforce how digital health platforms are using randomised controlled evidence, still uncommon in the space, to secure expanded adoption within public health systems.

Source: irishtechnews.ie / thedigitalhub.com