Lung cancer patient’s journey project

The goal of the lung cancer patient’s journey development project is to enhance and enrich the experience of individuals dealing with lung cancer, providing them with improved tools to cope with their illness.

The implementation of the project takes place in collaboration between the private and public sectors: the public sector (Estonian Ministry of Social Affairs, Health Insurance Fund) and the private sector (healthcare companies AstraZeneca, MSD, Roche, Pfizer), with the collaboration platform being the Tehnopol HealthTech Community. Research partners involved in the project include East Tallinn Central Hospital, North Estonia Regional Hospital, and Tartu University Hospital.

The project involves the owners of the problem: lung cancer patients and their close ones, as well as all key stakeholders in the patient’s journey (doctors and other specialists, specialised societies, hospitals, social service providers, etc.). Also, decision-makers in the healthcare system are included.

By involving various stakeholders, a nationwide view is ensured, mapping the journey from the time before the onset of the first symptoms until recovery or death, regardless of the person’s place of residence.

The project combines service design and data-based analysis. In addition to mapping the journey, pain points are identified, prioritized, and development needs are formulated. In terms of service design, the project relies on a health-specific tool based on the OneCustomer methodology, designed for structured analysis and visualization of customer journeys. In the data-based analysis of the journey, the impacts of the patient’s journey on their future life, including employability, service needs, taxes, etc., are examined.

As a result of the project, the identification and development of novel solutions that meet the needs are carried out to achieve the goal of making the cancer patient’s journey smoother in practice. For this purpose, health technology companies and startups are involved as potential solution providers/developers.

Project Duration: 2023-2024

Media Coverage (in Estonian):

• 04.01.2023 – Uudne riigi ja erasektori partnerlus panustab vähitõrjeplaani
  (Postimees | Med24 | Meditsiiniuudised)
• 06.06.2023 – Maivi Parv tervisekassast: anname tõuke inimkesksele tervishoiule
  (Postimees | Med24 | Geenius | Virutaalkliinik)