Asthma, COPD Management Program Launches In Atlantic Canada
FREDERICTON— A virtual chronic disease management program for people with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) officially launched in Atlantic Canada this week.
The company, BreatheSuite Inc., is a digital health company based in St. John’s, Newfoundland, founded by chief executive officer Brett Vokey.
“Our vision as a company is to empower the lives of people with respiratory conditions worldwide,” Vokey told Huddle.
Asthma and COPD Program
Vokey said there are three main parts of BreatheSuite’s asthma and COPD program.
The first is an inhaler sensor that fits on most metered dose inhalers. This sensor will let patients know how well they are taking their medication.
“For people [who] are relying on medication daily, we need to make sure that medication is actually being delivered to the lungs.”
Vokey said one of the statistics they are always surprised by is that roughly 90 percent of people who take inhalers daily are doing it incorrectly. That results in less than 20 percent of their medication actually reaching their lungs.
The sensor will track how well the device is being taken and funnel that information into the patients BreatheSuite mobile application.
The second part of the program are trained respiratory health coaches who work with BreatheSuite users on an individual basis. The coaches will help address the patients’ barriers that prevent them from managing their asthma or COPD.
Vokey said an example his team has heard is that some people haven’t received the chance to fully learn about their asthma or COPD, because of time, the healthcare environment, or even their health care provider.
“That’s really the purpose of our respiratory health coaches — to spend the dedicated time with these individuals, build a relationship with them, build trust with them, and ultimately work together to try to improve their goals in terms of managing their asthma or managing their COPD.”
The third part of the program is the mobile application that incorporates both Part One and Two.
The application allows users to receive feedback on their inhaler usage, learn from in-app education modules, and track their symptoms to see change over time. This information is accessible by the users’ respiratory health coach, allowing them to intervene if the user is showing worsening signs.
Vokey said one of the good things about using the technology is seeing who interacts with the app regularly and how they are progressing. Certain users might need more coaching when they first start using the program, but as time goes by, their need for coaching might decrease.
Vokey said part of the timing behind the Atlantic Canadian launch is they have some insurance plans that will cover the program — some of which are prevalent in Atlantic Canada. The pricing of the management program is dependent on the users insurance coverage. The program is accessible for purchase through their website.
History of BreatheSuite
Vokey said he previously worked in the healthcare system.
“My job was to essentially implement different solutions to the biggest problems that our healthcare system was facing,” said Vokey. “At the time, we saw a ton of people with respiratory conditions that were not really under control.”
He said it is known that health care providers are under resourced.
“There [are] not enough of them and, therefore, their time is very limited with each of these individuals.”
This was a prevalent problem in Newfoundland, as well as across Canada, so he was looking at virtual solutions where technology could be utilized to fill those gaps.
Vokey said this has been a project of his for “quite a few years” but receiving the first round of funding in 2019 allowed him to start bringing people in, leading to the acceleration of the company. It then got its regulatory approvals towards the end of 2021. Vokey said this was the green light to start working commercially with patients.
“We have always been a firm believer of that fact that technology really only can solve half of the problem. The other aspect is still that important human connection that’s going to be essential in healthcare regardless.”
His team talked to users who were already using their product, and to users who were struggling with asthma and COPD regularly, and they frequently heard the same response: people did not feel heard and felt like they were not receiving enough time with their doctor to discuss their respiratory condition.
“Which is, again, not a flaw of the doctor, it’s just a flaw in the entire system and at that point we said, ‘well, I think there’s an opportunity here to marry technology with really that human component that’s essential health care.’”
The program has gone through the beta phase, with clinical trials done.
As for expansion goals, his team has a region-by-region growth plan to expand throughout Canada, as well as being FDA-approved, which they have a state-by-state approach they are working through.
Jessica Saulnier is an intern with Huddle in Fredericton. Send her your feedback and story ideas: [email protected].