The e-health sector aims to develop digital solutions for patients. What are the challenges of this booming sector and what are some concrete applications?
The first Digital Health Meetings are being held on Thursday in Poitiers, at the initiative of the experimental third-place Generation Santé Numérique (TLE GSN). Led by the Poitiers University Hospital and six partners, this structure supports the development and experimentation of technological innovations aimed at improving the care of the most vulnerable populations, especially in pediatrics, geriatrics, mental health, and disabilities. Integrated into the Prismatics team, led by Prof. Philippe Rigoard, the TLE GSN also relies on the Poitiers Clinical Investigation Center (INSERM 1402).
Bringing projects to light
Digital health encompasses all digital tools and services applied to the medical field, from prevention to patient monitoring, diagnosis, and treatments. This is manifested in concrete ways through devices such as digital medical records, telemedicine, connected devices, mobile applications, and artificial intelligence for analysis and diagnosis. This event addresses the different necessary steps for developing an innovation in digital health. “Starting from an identified need in the field, the objective is to design a digital medical device,” explains Manuel Roulaud, project manager in technological innovations in health and digital health. “We support project developers towards technology transfer, in collaboration with the Grand Poitiers, La Rochelle, and Niort Technopoles, as well as through the stages leading to their market launch. Several challenges mark this journey: system interoperability, data security, ethical issues, intellectual property, and regulatory framework.”
Innovations for the future
Several initiatives illustrate the advancements in the sector, such as an application dedicated to urinary incontinence. “This application centralizes data, records episodes in real time, and offers doctors a more precise evaluation.” Another notable project is Imasmart, led by Dr. Adrien Julian. This solution, currently in development, aims to collect passive data through an application to detect Alzheimer’s disease early on. In La Rochelle, the company Hopevalley.ai has also developed a technology dedicated to early detection of breast cancer. These tools contribute to making healthcare more effective, accessible, and personalized.
