Digital health innovations and learning health systems

In an ongoing pursuit of better health care, O'Brien Institute for Public Health members continue to drive impactful change.  

Firstline – Clinical Decisions app 

In collaboration with Canadian and international partners, including the World Health Organization, O’Brien Institute members developed the ground-breaking mobile app, Firstline – Clinical Decisions. The free app, which results from a decade of research, addresses the global public health threat of antimicrobial resistance. As of 2023, the app has been successfully deployed in over 400 hospitals across 13 countries. 

Health Everywhere 

Another promising digital health innovation, Health Everywhere, secured funding from the Alberta Major Innovation Fund in 2023. Co-developed by the O’Brien Institute W21C Research and Innovation Centre, along with community, industry, and academic partners, Health Everywhere aims to become a provincial hub of digital health excellence by fostering innovation, economic growth, and global impact in an already dynamic eHealth  and mHealth ecosystem in Alberta. 

Refugee Health YYC 

The O'Brien Institute welcomed Refugee Health YYC as an official research interest group in 2023. In July, Refugee Health YYC co-hosted a Refugee Health Policy workshop that resulted in the development of a roadmap to collectively enhance national healthcare systems for refugees. This comprehensive methodology, the result of engaging stakeholders from healthcare, academia, refugee community leadership, and policymakers, marks a significant milestone in North American refugee healthcare. 

Subsequently, after giving an impactful presentation at the World Health Organization Refugee and Migrant Health Programme in Geneva, Refugee Health YYC pledged, on behalf of the University, to align with the program's activities, marking the first commitment from a Canadian university. This establishes a comprehensive framework prioritizing evidence-based practices and measurable outcomes to support refugees' health and integration into health systems. 

Improving acute care for long-term care residents 

In 2023, researchers at the O'Brien Institute's Brenda Strafford Centre on Aging addressed a critical challenge in long-term care by optimizing acute care for residents without the need for transfer to  an emergency department. The established pathway, now part of the standard of care in Calgary,  has significantly reduced transfers from long-term care to emergency departments and subsequent hospitalizations, aligning with the Centre on Aging's commitment to improving the quality of care for  long-term care residents while alleviation strain on healthcare resources. 

FICare 

Alberta Health Services successfully scaled and spread Family Integrated Care (FICare), a model that integrates families as partners in the neonatal intensive care team, across all 14 neonatal intensive care units (NICU in Alberta). Co-developed by O’Brien Institute members, FICare reduced the average NICU stay by half a day, resulting in estimated savings of approximately $1.9 million from 2020-2022. 

As evidenced by their groundbreaking digital health innovations and transformative research endeavors, O'Brien Institute members continue to spearhead initiatives that ensure sustainable, high-quality healthcare is accessible to all.