Our focus
Our Smart Health research group focuses on health promotion and personalised care supported by technological and data-driven solutions. This enables the research group to contribute to facilitating appropriate care, reducing socio-economic health inequalities and the development of future-proof healthcare professionals. We do this work based on three core tasks.
Health promotion in the local community
We strive to improve health in the local community by strengthening the position of those who are most vulnerable including looking at their physical and social environment. We focus on lifestyle, mental health, loneliness, stress and resilience. This theme finds itself at the intersection of health, well-being and the spatial domain and is supported by data-driven action.
Health promotion in healthcare
Strengthening the leadership of healthcare professionals is key. This focuses on providing appropriate care and supporting clients with emerging symptoms or chronic conditions to take charge of their own health. We focus on the interaction between healthcare professionals and clients along with interprofessional cooperation. We make use of data-driven decision support while taking into account the complexity of behavioural change. Specific expertise lies in exercise and sports.
Specialist tasks
The specialist task Podiatry makes a recognised contribution to the further development of the professional field and the profiling of podiatry in the Netherlands. We work together on innovations and substantiation of podiatric practice. The focus is on the development of value-driven podiatric prevention and care. The needs and available options of both client and podiatrist are key. Our work is based on a national collaboration between the Podiatry study programmes at Saxion and Fontys and the Dutch Professional Association of Podiatrists (NVvP).
Our focus is on increasing leadership among professionals using the Best Practice Unit (BPU) method and having a broad perspective on health. We want to bring about desired lifestyle changes and improve health and well-being among patients in the Twente region from a Positive Health perspective. The L.INT Positive Health, Lifestyle and Leadership Research Group is a collaboration between the Smart Health Research Group and Medisch Spectrum Twente (MST).