CHUA Wins National Award for “More Value in Health”

CHUA wins the National Award for “Greater Value in Health” with an innovative project that combines technology and circular economy in hospital management.

Centro Hospitalar e Universitário do Algarve (CHUA) received yesterday afternoon, November 29, the highest honor for its project that combines technology and sustainability, allowing to increase the parity and manufacturing capacity of the supporting product core, through the production of customized prostheses and orthotics using scanners and 3D printing Dimensions.

The new CHUA Support Products Center will enable the centralization of the entire system of support products (technical aids) for the various units of the hospital center, taking into account the needs of patients throughout the therapeutic process, in a more efficient and sustainable way.

This response, which is unique to the hospital landscape of the National Health Service (SNS), will make it possible to streamline individual assessments within the range of support products, provide differentiated and tailored solutions, reduce hospitalization times and the rehabilitation process, and increase users’ independence and functionality.

On the other hand, 3D printing of replacement components and the subsequent process of thermoplastic reuse, recovery and recycling, allows for an increase in the useful life of products, which reduces their impact on the system. This use of the circular economy also allows, in the medium term, to reduce costs and increase profitability, with growth expected in the coming years.

During this year, CHUA has already seen an average of 10,000 users in outpatient clinics in the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation, in units of Faro, Portimao, Lagos and Centro de Medicina de Repletação do Sul, having prescribed about 1,300 support products, in order to improve patients’ independence .

The core of the newly created support products, integrated in the Department of Teaching, Innovation and Research CHUA (DEII) and in partnership with the Graduate School of Health of the University of Algarve (UAlg), officially inaugurated earlier this month by the Minister of Health Manuel Pizarro with the aim of contributing to the management strategy Based on assumptions of sustainability and efficiency in serving patients undergoing rehabilitation.

The CHUA winning project, integrated and coordinated by Núcleo de Produtos de Apoio, will be exemplary and directed by Clarice Mendez, occupational therapist and doctoral student, thus having access to specialized consulting services that will allow the consolidation of a culture of health management based on value, either through the implementation of Process improvement strategies, with better clinical outcomes and patient satisfaction, or through better allocation of financial resources, community involvement in the reuse and quality certification of ongoing products.

The “More Value in Health – Vidas que Valem” grants aim to support projects that aim to implement innovations, changes or improvements in SNS hospitals, with the ultimate goal of obtaining the best health outcomes, marking four projects of a multidisciplinary nature annually.

The Mais Valor em Saúde – Vidas que Valem program is a partnership between the Portuguese Association of Hospital Administrators (APAH), the companies Exigo, Gilead Sciences and IASIST in the field of consultancy and Altice as a technical partner. It also has institutional support from the Nurses Syndicate, the Pharmacists Syndicate, and the Physicians Syndicate.

The evaluation of the applications was in charge of a jury chaired by María de Belém Rosera and included Miguel Guimarães, President of the Medical Association, Rui Pinto, of the National Directorate of the Pharmacists’ Association, Ana Rita Cavaco, President of the Nurses Association, Pedro Pita Barros, Health Economist, Xavier Pareto, President of APAH and Vera Aregoso, a health journalist.

The awards ceremony took place yesterday in Lisbon.