On Monday, November 25th, a new telemedicine pilot project was launched in Montreal focused on applying medical care used in space to alleviate doctor shortages in Canada.
The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) funded pilot leverages technology created by Canadian medical software developer Baüne, and is taking place at CIUSS (Centre Intégré de Santé et de Services Sociaux), a social services site in the Pierrefonds, on Montreal’s West Island.
According to Baüne’s announcement, they opened an “innovative autonomous health care unit” called a “Telehealth Station,” which uses medical technology similar to the kind being employed by astronauts. The Station uses their Nüpa health platform to integrate a variety of medical devices and systems within the health care unit, and then connects remotely to medical professionals so they can evaluate the patients’ vitals and flag them for further detailed diagnosis and treatment where necessary.
Real-time telemedicine at Montreal event
Patients at the CIUSS site enter the Telehealth Station, a “room equipped with state-of-the-art equipment” that measures vitals like blood pressure, pulse rate and blood oxygen, according to Baüne, and the data is transmitted “in real time” to a nurse for evaluation. It also includes a wearable smart device that helps with the collection and transmission of patients’ vitals. Depending on their medical situation and the nurse’s evaluation, patients who use the suite can get an appointment with a doctor. For the pilot, there will be a medical professional available to assist with patients using the Station.
The Telehealth Station was launched at an event that featured Sameer Zuberi, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities, Lisa Campbell, President of the CSA, Astronaut David Saint-Jacques, as well as the Dan Gabay, CEO and President of CIUSS Montreal West-Island. At the event, people were able to try out the suite at CIUSS, testing their vital signs and getting to see a health overview on the suite’s point of care screen. According to Baüne, the technology has also been deployed at CSA headquaters, where it is “undergoing rigorous testing to ensure it can be operated in space.”
According to the CSA, this pilot program is part of the “Connected Care Medical Module”, or C2M2 a “Health Beyond Initiative,” which seeks to develop a variety of C2M2 approaches and technologies that can be used in space, on the Moon, and in remote parts of Canada as well. In addition to Baüne, four other companies were contracted to develop C2M2 technologies: Canadian Space Mining Corporation, CGI, Lunar Medical, and Phyxable.
Pilot through to March, but possibly longer
Andrea Galindo, COO of Baüne, confirmed in an email to SpaceQ that this technology was “initially design[ed] for autonomous healthcare of astronauts.” She said that the evaluation suite also includes “mental health assessments using a non-identifying vision sensor” and “an electronic health record platform that also provides a risk assessment tool and health data for the doctors.”
Galindo confirmed that the initial pilot contract is part of the CSA’s Health Beyond Initiative, and that the pilot is slated to run until at least March 2025. She said, however, that the Station is “expected to run longer by [contracting with] the CIUSS.” Baüne is “already finalizing contract details.” Galindo also said that “we have been awarded a second contract on the C2M2 for emergency care.”
Galindo said that this reflects the CSA’s “duality approach” to healthcare technology, exploring applications in both space and on Earth, and the space version of the technology has had an “extension of [the] initial contract with an international collaboration with the UK Space Agency.” The space version of their C2M2 project has now also started to incorporate exercise equipment, to measure and alleviate the impacts on muscle mass and bone density caused by microgravity.
When asked about terrestrial telemedicine, Galindo said that it was definitely a factor. A nurse will be directly and locally involved in the pilot, but as “telemedicine is part of the space deployment technology,” opportunities exist to incorporate telepresence and telemedicine in future implementations of the technology. Galindo said that the current system acts as a “decision support system” for healthcare practitioners performing assessment and diagnostics, but that “we are already working on ways to improve the system,” which may include extending that decision support system to treatment.
As to whether and how it would be applicable for remote communities in Canada, where the need for medical professionals is often most acute, she said that “the vision of the Health Beyond Initiative … is to bring this autonomous healthcare system not only to astronauts but also to people in remote communities across Canada.” She added, however, that “it’s crucial to adapt the technology to meet the specific needs of each community,” instead of trying a one-size-fits all approach. This will involve, she said, “working closely with healthcare professionals throughout the entire implementation process.”
Dan Gabay said at the event that the Telehealth Station “marks a turning point in improving the care of orphan clients,” and is an approach that is “more responsive to the needs of our users.” Gabay confirmed that they hope to make the Station a permanent fixture at CIUSSS sites, saying that their goal “is to make this initiative permanent and to deploy it in our other sites so that all our users can benefit from it.”
