An interview with Prof. Dr. Patrick van Rheenen
University Medical Center Groningen, The Netherlands
Can you introduce yourself and your organization?
My name is Patrick van Rheenen and I work at the University Medical Centre in Groningen (the Netherlands). I am a clinical researcher into paediatric inflammatory bowel disease.
How did you choose IBDoc® for the Flarometer project?
Part of my research focuses on home telemonitoring. We showed that reducing the number of face-toface health checks and building in calprotectin-based telemonitoring was equally safe for children as conventional face-to-face health checks. That time we used sent-in stool samples, and we found that the quality of the sample deteriorates on its way to the lab. This was especially the case when the stool sample pack was dropped in a postbox in summertime, with prolonged exposure to high temperatures. To overcome this problem, we wanted patients to test their fecal calprotectin level at home. And that is where IBDoc® came in. We chose IBDoc® after a head-to-head comparison of the different solutions on the market. With IBDoc® showing a good comparison to the laboratory results and the lowest number of reading errors, it gave us the confidence to use this system.
