The TAP project RISE has developed an integrated software system (CareLine), which enables Home Care Services Providers to co-ordinate the work of multidisciplinary teams that are involved in the provision of these services. This is done via the use of a Multimedia Health Record, Care Plans, a Visit Scheduling feature and a powerful Management Information System.

The CareLine software offers well-organised data processing infrastructure for supporting a wide range of Home Care Services in a holistic and integrated way via a Virtual Coordination Centre. This Centre effectively manages and controls multidisciplinary teams of visiting professionals that provide home care services and automatically integrates all relevant medical data for the patients as this is acquired by medical devices. In this way, the system allows medical experts to make critical decisions based on accurate input from medical devices without physically visiting the patient at home. Initial business analysis has shown that the implementation of the CareLine software may save up to 25% - 50% in hospitalisation costs and administrative costs for Home Care Service Providers.

The CareLine software is based on a Client / Server architecture, modern RDBMS, Multimedia and Telematics technology. Special modules are used for connecting a wide range of medical devices. Special care has been taken to implement different functions into distinct, yet related, modules (software components), which address every aspect of the user needs.

The CareLine system consists of the following components:
a) Central Database System (CDS) for database, administration, maintenance, storage and archiving.
b) Network Workstation System (NWS) for the coordination and monitoring of home care and medical services.
c) Visiting Professional System (VPS) for home care services provision.

All these components exchange information via the telematics infrastructure, which consists of the Multimedia Health Record, Care Plan Management, Expert Workbench, Carer Workbench, Workplan Scheduler, Medical Data Acquisition, Administration, Maintenance and Security. In addition, CareLine provides dynamic translation facilities into the native language of each site, is able to store codified and non-codified medical information, and has a 5-level security system with encryption.

CareLine enables healthcare and home care provider organisations to co-ordinate and optimise their resources and offer high standard medical services at home. It reduces the costs of healthcare provision by replacing (whenever possible) high cost professionals with lower cost paramedical personnel and by reducing the time needed for administrative tasks and unnecessary travel.

Following the end of the project, the partners intend to promote the system to healthcare providers throughout Europe For more information contact ATKOSoft.