When Dr Sally Wootton tells younger physiotherapists that she began her career with Manchester City Football Club in the United Kingdom, she sees their eyes light up. Digital health breakthrough for lung disease patients
But she is quick to add that her most rewarding role came later. “Helping someone with lung disease turn their lives around in eight weeks of rehabilitation has given me so much happiness as a physio,” she says. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a lung disease that makes it hard for people to breathe and worsens over time. Commonly known as emphysema or chronic bronchitis, it is a leading cause of illness and death worldwide. Evidence shows that rehabilitation supported by a multidisciplinary team of physiotherapists, dietitians, psychologists, and nurses brings significant benefits to patients. But unfortunately, many COPD patients struggle to access programs, which are usually run out of hospitals or community health centres, Sally says. “It is estimated only 10 per cent of Australians with the condition have access to a program.” Sally, a Clinical Specialist Physiotherapist at Northern Sydney Local Health District (NSLHD), first explored the access issue in 2014, and by 2018, she and colleague Professor Andrew Chan had begun co-designing an app with clinicians, technicians, and people living with COPD. Now, after years of user testing and a randomised controlled trial, the m-PR™ platform is being rolled out across the district. The eight-week program runs on a smartphone, with weekly clinician check-ins. It includes tailored exercise, education, goal-setting, symptom monitoring, and more. Sally says mobile health technology – or “m-health,”– puts healthcare in the hands of the patient. “It really empowers them to actually look at their health and track it,” she says.
A trial involving 90 participants run from 2022 to 2024 found the app was as effective as traditional centre-based rehabilitation. “We have proved that the patients were happy and felt confident and supported to use the platform,” says Sally. A carbon emissions analysis also showed that with less driving, the app resulted in lower carbon emissions. Plans are underway to partner with a Sydney-based company that had already developed a platform that engages and motivates people with chronic illness to do tasks every day. Research is also underway to road test the app with staff and refine its implementation. The district continues to run a variety of rehabilitation programs at community health centres at five sites, which look after about 1,200 patients a year. Zoom- based programs are also available. “People are just amazed how much better they are after doing rehab.” For Sally, the goal is simple: to make life better for people with COPD – no matter where they live.
Professor Andrew Chan and Dr Sally Wootton
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