While cancer survival rates have increased significantly, cancer survivors still suffer from a wide range of issues, often significantly decrementing their quality of life. Beyond the need for health systems to address these issues, cancer survivors also deserve to receive relevant and adapted information to help them meet the challenges they face. Such information should cover all aspects of their cancer survivorship, including access to specialist care and support services addressing both physical and psycho-social impacts of cancer. In this respect, the smartCARE project aims at developing a Cancer Survivor Smart Card to improve the quality of life and health status of cancer survivors, in the form of a mobile application, embracing the core attributes of patient-centred care. smartCARE will run an extensive user’s need assessment to achieve the fullest understanding of the range of survivors, caregiver & healthcare professionals’ needs associated to the development of a cancer Survivor Smart Card.
In doing so, particular understanding will be gained in respect to paediatric and adult cancer survivor needs and the needs of cancer survivors with co-morbidities. smartCARE will conceptualise specifications and develop the overarching long-term vision of a Cancer Survivor Smart Card. In addition, smartCARE will run a technical proof of concept through the development and piloting of an application by defining an interoperable Smart Card solution usable across a variety of healthcare infrastructures and readily available to survivors and their families.
The Smart Card will facilitate patient empowerment, allowing survivors to have an easy access to their treatment summary, being able to share it with relatives and professionals but also having access to a broad range of resources and functionalities enhancing quality of life. The application will comprise three main elements: treatment summary, resources functions & follow-up care plan and self-management tools.
