BRADFORD is poised to become one of the first places in the UK to pilot an innovative healthcare device.

Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which includes Bradford Royal Infirmary and St Luke's Hospital, is to partner with Tyto Care to use the all-in-one device for on-demand, remote medical examinations.

The Trust is set to break new ground by carrying out remote examinations and diagnoses with a cohort of young patients, with acute and worsening chronic conditions.

It has been used across the United States and Israel, but has now attained CE Mark approval for use in Europe, with the Trust being the first to bring the device to the NHS.

The project will be spearheaded by the Ambulatory Care Experience (ACE) team, which brings care to unwell children from the comfort of their own home and aims to prevent unnecessary admissions to hospitals.

“This partnership between Tyto Care and ACE brings together two healthcare leaders,” said Cindy Fedell, the Trust’s Chief Digital and Information Officer.

“This ‘digital-first’ approach to care, where we put health in the hands and homes of patients, is a lynchpin of the NHS’s long-term telehealth plan.

“It also marks a milestone in our journey of digital innovation, which is already gathering pace thanks to other ground-breaking projects now in place in Bradford.

“These include the launch of Europe’s first Command Centre to improve the flow of patients around our hospitals, and the appointment of our inaugural head of clinical artificial intelligence.”

TytoCare is a handheld, modular examination device that is said to enable comprehensive and clinical-grade physical exams of the heart, lungs, skin, ears, throat and abdomen, and measures body temperature and heart rate, to enable remote diagnosis of acute care situations.

During a virtual consultation, clinical visual and audio data is captured by the device and transferred either online or offline to a clinician. Local pharmacies can also link in, where prescriptions can be ordered.

“We are proud to partner with Bradford Teaching Hospitals to implement our telehealth solution and make an impact on a community that will benefit enormously from remote care,” said Dedi Gilad, CEO and Co-Founder of Tyto Care.

“Tyto was created with children and families in mind to deliver convenient and accessible medical care without compromising quality, all from the comfort of home. We’re looking forward to enhancing the incredible work Bradford and the ACE teams are doing with existing at-home care.”

The ACE service involves an experienced community nursing team treating children aged up to 16-years-old in their own home, under the expert guidance of the Trust’s consultant paediatricians. The three-month pilot with Tyto Care will be evaluated by the Bradford team early in 2020 to assess its benefits and its potential for expansion to other patient groups.