A new monitoring method based on radio holography will aid patients receiving in-home palliative care. It will provide an overview of patient activity, such as whether they are getting out of bed or need assistance, while also ensuring greater autonomy for patients and their families without intruding on privacy. Pioneers in testing radio holography in palliative care are researchers from the Interdisciplinary Research Laboratory for Bioethics (IRLab) at the Institute of Philosophy of the Czech Academy of Sciences. Their task is to ensure an ethically acceptable way to use this technology.
The Czechs are the first in the world to test ethical-by-design radio holography with in-home palliative care patients. This technology is used for non-invasive monitoring of patients in their home environment. By using radio waves, it creates three-dimensional images or maps of the surroundings, allowing the monitoring of patient movements and gestures. This method of monitoring aims to simultaneously improve their independence, safety, and quality of care.
Monitoring, Privacy, and Sensitive Approach Together
The goal of the researchers within the pilot project is to understand the transparency and information needs that individuals expect and require from the technology. These findings will inform how to design the use of this technology in an ethically acceptable way to benefit individuals and enable its use in broader healthcare settings. The expected outcome is the improvement of patient experiences during difficult periods of illness and managing terminal conditions.
While the technology is being tested and will be applied in the Czech Republic, the insights gained may be used to develop sensitive and privacy-respecting radio holographic technology for healthcare in Europe and beyond.
Palliative care is specialized medical care focused on providing relief from pain and other symptoms of patients suffering from severe illness. Its goal is not to cure the illness itself but to improve the quality of life for patients and their families. It often focuses on patients with
terminal conditions, such as cancer or other serious chronic diseases, where the care is aimed at symptom relief, comfort improvement, and meeting individual needs and wishes.
The unique pilot project named Holden-Care launched in the Czech Republic this year will last for 16 months. The research team, led by Dr Geoffrey Dierckxsens, consists of experts in ethics, law, and medicine.
The Holden-Care project is part of the European "Hop On" scheme, which allows new partners to join ongoing research and innovation projects under the Horizon Europe program. The inclusion of the Interdisciplinary Research Laboratory for Bioethics (IRLab) as a Czech partner into the already active HOLDEN innovative project was approved by the consortium of research institutions including Aalto University (FI), Consiglio Nazionale Delle Ricerche (IT), Politecnico di Milano (IT), Adant SRL (IT), Technische Universität München (GM), University of Twente (NL).
More about the project: Holden-project, https://www.irlab.cz/
