Vitality project IVY is crowned winner of the Patient Innovation Award 2019. A lot of breast cancer patients develop severe fatigue and lower self-esteem during and after their treatment. The IVY-app – a collaboration project of ZGT and UT – is developed to strengthen the self-esteem in terms of vitality in an early stage. The app got the most votes from the audience and the jury.
The IVY-app is created in a collaboration between UT, the Dutch Breast Cancer Association (BVN) and ZGT. Roos Wolbers, junior researcher, and associate professors at the department of Psychology, Health & Technology, Christina Bode and Marcel Pieterse all helped to create the app. The app sets an example for personalized eHealth Technology.
“I’m very happy with this award”, says Christina Bode. “It shows that patients, audience and researchers see that implicitly influencing self-images is an important and innovative part of early self-management in breast cancer. With this app, we can help persons pay attention to vitality during and after their illness. The app is simple and we can reach patients whom we miss with more complex interventions.”
Internist-Oncologist from ZGT Ester Siemerink received the award: “The prize money allows us to develop the app further to empower the patient during his or her treatment. I really believe that our product has added value to keep your brain more vital. It helps to endure your treatment and to maintain your role in society. And for us as a project group, it is a nice reward for a fruitful collaboration between three parties.”
Do you want to learn more about the app? Check out the following video.
