GerOnTe
Grant agreement ID: nr. 945218
Principal investigator: Rosanna Tarricone (CeRGAS)
Team UB/Cergas: Lucia Ferrara, Valeria D. Tozzi (CeRGAS)
Partners: Universite De Bordeaux (UBx – Coordinator, France), Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL – Belgium), Stichting Diakonessenhuis (DIAK, Netherlands), Oslo Universitetssykehus Hf (OUS, Norway), University College Dublin (UCD, Ireland), E-Seniors: Initiation Des Seniors Aux Ntic Association (ESE, France), Mypl Sas (MyPL, France), Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi (BOC, Italy), International Society Of Geriatric Oncology (SIOG, Switzerland), Dublin City University (DCU, Ireland)
Sponsor: European Union's Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Action (Call HORIZON-H2020-SC1-BHC-24-2020 “Healthcare interventions for the management of the elderly multimorbid patient”)
Duration: April 2021-March 2026
The fact that multimorbid and vulnerable patients need improved care coordination is well known. However, current healthcare system is still mainly single-disease oriented and as a result, coexisting morbidities are often under-evaluated and under managed leading to inappropriate care, inefficiencies, duplication and poor quality of care. The overall aim of GERONTE is to improve quality of life - defined as well-being on three levels: global health status, physical functioning, and social functioning- for older multimorbid patients, while reducing overall costs of care. To achieve these goals, GERONTE will co-design, test, and prepare for deployment an innovative cost-effective patient-centred holistic health management system, referred to as the GERONTE intervention. GERONTE intervention will rely on the following components: 1) an ICT based application for real-time collection and integration of standardised clinical and home patient-reported data; 2) Coordination of management by a patient-tailored, interdisciplinary health professional consortium (HPC), including hospital- and home-based professionals, with a case manager. GERONTE intervention will be demonstrated through a stepped-wedge randomized clinical trial in the context of care of multimorbid patients having cancer as a dominant morbidity, and be adaptable to any other combination of morbidities.
The objectives of the GerOnTe project are as following:
O1: INFORMATION: gather the stakeholders and data needed for patient-centred and multi-actor complex decision-making process and management
O2: TOOLS: develop ICT tools for the GERONTE intervention to be implemented
O3: METHODS: develop socio-economic methods for evaluating the impacts of the implementation of the GERONTE intervention
O4: DEMONSTRATION: demonstrate in 16 study sites from three EU countries (France, Belgium and the Netherlands) the feasibility and effectiveness of the GERONTE intervention
O5: REPLICATION: develop recommendations for the replication of GERONTE best practices in all European health systems
O6: ENGAGEMENT: engage all stakeholders by co-designing the GERONTE intervention
Material produced and publications:
Ferrara, L., Ardito, V., Tozzi, V. D., & Tarricone, R. (2022). GERONTE DELIVERABLE D3.1 Literature review on the cost-effectiveness of healthcare services for older multimorbid patients. Zenodo. discover more
Ferrara, L., Ardito, V., Tozzi, V. D., & Tarricone, R. (2022). D3.6 _ Care pathway in the 3 trial countries (5.0). Zenodo. discover more
Dissemination:
O Sullivan B., Soubeyran P., O Hanlon S., Gros M., Lehn E., Connolly R., Corrigan T., Ferrara L., Ardito V., Staines A., White C., & Davis P.. (2021). GERONTE project: Participatory Rapid Appraisal for the co-design of a technology-supported improved care pathway for older cancer patients with multimorbiditywith. Annual conference. Zenodo. discover more
Presentations (conferences):
Ferrara L., Ardito V., Tozzi VD, Tarricone R (2022). How to conduct an economic evaluation of health service interventions for patients with multiple morbidities? A scoping literature review, AIES Conference 8-9 September, Messina
Ferrara L., Ardito V, Tozzi VD, O’Sullivan B, Staines A, Davies P, Tarricone R (2023). Care pathways for older multimorbid patients: lessons learned from 16 clinical sites in 3 Countries, 16th European Public Health Conference, 9-11 November 2023, Dublin
Ferrara L., Ardito V, Tozzi VD, O’Sullivan B, Staines A, Davies P, Tarricone R (2023). Variability in Care Pathways for Older Multimorbid Cancer Patients: Insights from a Multi-Country Study, AIES Conference, 5-6 December 2023