Project "Telemedical Network of Traumatic Stress Studies Saxony (Tele-NePS)"

Events like fatal accidents, (domestic) abuse or war are frequent reasons for corresponding psychic post-traumatic stress disorders. Due to their complexity and a high level of chronification, they cause a high expenditure of patient-centred care. An early and accurately fitting intervention can be preventive and effective. In contrast, there are high diagnostic uncertainties, from the side of family doctors and other non-psychotherapists (specialists), as well as coverage gaps. The sustainable improvement and establishment of an integrated treatment chain for traumatised patients is the main aim of the Telemedical Network of Traumatic Stress Studies Saxony (Tele-NePS). In the framework of this project modern information and communication systems (IuK) are used to improve the cooperation and communication between the participants and thereby to ensure the disease-specific patient-centred care. The projects result will guarantee an institutional comprehensive documentation, an area-wide know-how and standardised screening and diagnostic procedures. The resulting advantages on the part of the care providers will also result in a better quality of therapy for the patients.

In cooperation with our partners, the Clinic and Policlinic for Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic Medicine of the Teaching Hospital Dresden as well as the Carus Consilium Saxony GmbH, we are elaborating an IT-solution which will be integrated into the Telehealth Platform East Saxony (THOS). In addition to the crosslinking of specialists, an intensified integration of patients into their own treatment chain is a main component of the project. The project Tele-NePS will therefore enlarge the results of previous research and pursues the objective of a better quality of supply through a more efficient key resource use in the public health care sector.

Background Information:

Psychic post-traumatic stress disorders are very complex. The spectrum includes direct reactions subsequently to an extreme event as well as delayed occurrence of a post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or other symptoms like fear, depression or the development of addictive disorders. Preventative measures are as important as specific offered treatments in order to react appropriately to particular disease pattern. Psychotraumatology faces complex and highly individual requirements.

Not only a lack of knowledge or too little sensitisation towards post-traumatic clinical pictures cause uncertainties in confirming a diagnosis. Another important reason why there are these uncertainties is that the traumatic event is not really a topic of the discussion in the first place. The patients often feel ashamed of what happened to them or they are not able to link their symptoms to their experiences. That´s one reason why the necessity of a post-traumatic treatment for the patient is often not recognized in the first place. There is room for improvement in the identification and sub-sequent treatment of such diseases. Coverage gaps in confirming a diagnosis or in care-provision are often caused by a lack of information or proper assistance about treatment according to dear guidelines. The patients are entitled to structured health care across the state, independent of professional borders and according to appropriate guidelines. As consequence, the depicted problems cause an immense financial strain for the public health care sector. Summarised there are the following basic problems:

• Acatalepsia (Uncertainties in confirming a diagnosis) on the part of family doctors and non-psychotherapeutic specialists
• Gaps in coverage
• High health care costs caused by patients with psychic post-traumatic stress disorders
   

Objectives:

Main objective of the project is to use telemedical achievements as well as to improve the communication and interoperability of the treatment chain. Like that it´s possible to use structured health care therapies and treatments more efficiently. Furthermore, these achievements can create a basis for cooperation and networking, for example to ease the low-threshold access to the offers for aggrieved parties or to offer networking-partners a platform for communicating and comparing notes.

Together with our partners, the Clinic and Policlinic for Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic Medicine of the Teaching Hospital Dresden as well as the Carus Consilium Saxony GmbH, there is developed an integrated trauma-portal which will link the different corporative actors and target audiences. Diverse applications for professional care providers and patients offer an additional benefit for the involved people concerning numerous sectors of patient-centred care. Main point of the process is the regulation and supply of appropriate information and services over the Telehealth East Saxony Platform. The arrangement is realised jointly with the Telemedical Trauma Centre for Mental Health (TMTZSG).

The professional providers get access to the relevant information and services. The patient is also included into this informational process. Tele-NePS makes contribution to nearly every aspect of the advisory and treatment chain and effectuates so a massive improvement. The project will decrease the expenditure as well as the individual suffering and liability of concerned patients and acting partners in the public health care. Preceding achievements in research are developed and contribute the digital support of adjusted provision-concepts in the region.

Our project order:

Our expertise and know-how in the configuration of IT-Systems, particularly in a medical environment, will yield to achieve the described research- and development objectives.

Practical the HeLiCT-Team deals with the following key aspects:

• Modelling the concomitant supply-process and patientpath
• Conception and development of a IT-supported supply-process and patient integration
• Securing the integration into the already existing THOS-Platform
• Deduction of reusable models and applications

Apart from the objective achieved to improve the provision for patients with post-traumatic stress disorders, existing research results are further developed and the generation of reusable knowledge is channeled.