On March 11, 2025, the EVOLVE2CARE project continued its online workshop series, bringing together experts, researchers, and healthcare professionals to explore innovative approaches in Transitional Care.
The workshop titled “Aligning Innovation with Healthcare Stakeholder Needs” was the second under the whole name of “Accelerating Innovation in Transitional Care – Identifying Key Needs & Meaningful Impact” series.
Dr. Kostas Bakogiannis, a renowned Medical Doctor & Cardiologist, shared his expert insights into the challenges facing the healthcare sector. He focused on how innovation can better align with the needs of healthcare stakeholders, providing valuable perspectives on the evolving landscape.
Dr. Bakogiannis posed a critical question: Could digital health tools and innovations be a catalyst for improvement? He explored how these technologies might bridge the gap between clinical trial expectations and real-world healthcare realities.
Developing digital solutions for patient engagement
Reflecting on his work in digital cardiology, Dr. Bakogiannis shared his experience leading the Cardiovascular Prevention and Digital Cardiology Lab, founded in 2018. His team aims to create digital tools that enhance patient adherence to treatment and improve communication between patients and healthcare providers. One of their first projects, developed a patient-centered app “ThessHF” for heart failure patients.
The app was designed to be user-friendly, supporting adherence to treatment plans while strengthening the patient-clinic relationship. Clinical validation through the study showed that:
- Self-care levels significantly improved within the first three months.
- Quality of life showed slight improvements.
- However, adherence to the app dropped significantly after the second month, highlighting usability challenges.
These findings underscored the importance of designing digital tools that are not only effective but also engaging for long-term patient use.
Challenges in implementing digital health solutions
Dr. Bakogiannis emphasized the challenges in integrating digital health solutions into everyday clinical practice. Healthcare professionals face overwhelming workloads, time constraints, and burnout—issues exacerbated globally, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic.
While many digital solutions promise transformation, real-world implementation often falls short of expectations.
Key barriers include:
- Regulatory & Legal Challenges – Issues such as data privacy, cybersecurity, and the lack of a harmonized health technology assessment process hinder widespread adoption.
- Lack of Standardization & Interoperability – Many digital tools lack seamless integration with existing healthcare systems and require standardized validation frameworks.
- High Costs, Lack of Cosy-Effectiveness Studies & Lack of Reimbursement Models – Digital health solutions remain costly, and healthcare administrators often demand cost-effectiveness studies before approving new technologies.
AI in Healthcare: Endogenous & Existing Challenges
- Lack of trust in AI-driven decision making – Many healthcare professionals remain skeptical about AI-based recommendations, fearing errors.
- Bias linked to lack of harmonized & qualitative data – AI models require high-quality, standardized data, but inconsistencies and biases in datasets can lead to unreliable results.
- The “Black Box” problem & lack of transparency – AI decision-making processes can be opaque, making it difficult for clinicians to understand or validate AI-generated conclusions. The push for explainable AI is critical in overcoming this challenge.
Proposed solutions for overcoming challenges
- Aligning innovation with clinical needs – Co-designing solutions with all stakeholders to ensure digital tools are human-centered, user-friendly, and seamlessly integrated into clinical workflows.
- Policy & regulatory adaptation – Establishing fast-track approval pathways while aligning with existing policies for data privacy and security.
- Financial & reimbursement models– Developing cost-effectiveness studies to support value-based reimbursement models and encourage investment in digital health solutions.
- AI & data ethics optimization – Implementing explainable AI and bias mitigation strategies to enhance trust and transparency in AI-driven healthcare solutions.
- Physician & patient education & digital literacy – Integrating digital health training into medical education and expanding workshops for patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals to improve adoption and engagement.
The EVOLVE2CARE’s KPI Framework
One of the biggest challenges in healthcare innovation is ensuring that new solutions meet the expectations of real-world healthcare realities. To bridge this gap, the EVOLVE2CARE project has developed a KPI framework that evaluates the development and real-world impact of health tech innovations within Living Labs.
The 4 Key Stakeholder Categories
EVOLVE2CARE’s KPIs are structured around the four primary groups impacted by health innovation:
- Healthcare Professionals – Measuring how digital tools improve clinical efficiency, reduce workload, and enhance decision-making.
- Patients – Focusing on individualized care and digital health literacy. KPIs in this category assess whether patients are empowered, informed, and confident in using digital tools for their health management.
- Hospitals & Organizations – Evaluating interoperability, cost-effectiveness, and system-wide adoption of digital health solutions. EVOLVE2CARE emphasizes value-based impact assessments, helping hospitals and policymakers determine which innovations deliver both economic and clinical benefits.
- Caregivers – Recognizing the essential role of family members and informal caregivers in transitional care. KPIs in this category assess whether digital health tools help caregivers provide better support, reduce stress, and enhance communication with healthcare teams.
What’s next?
The final session of the EVOLVE2CARE workshop series will focus on one of the most pressing aspects of healthcare innovation: regulatory requirements. Bringing together experts in digital health and medical device compliance.
Join us as we tackle the complexities of regulation and discuss strategies for successfully navigating the evolving landscape of digital health compliance.
