Chronic Kidney Disease Project

Existing treatments for patients suffering from chronic kidney disease leading to end stage renal disease (ESRD) are difficult to coordinate and costly to the health system. The long-term health outcomes for these individuals depend on coordinated support between the care team and the patient to ensure self-management. To that end, DHC and Ayogo Health, a Vancouver-based digital health technology developer, have collaborated on a multi-year project to develop digital patient support tools for patients with ESRD. The treatment of ESRD is complex, and as a small business, Ayogo struggled to access the knowledge it needed to guide product development. DHC helped Ayogo assemble an expert advisory panel of nephrologists, nurses, health purchasers, patients and care providers to provide a complete view of the ESRD treatment pathway, from first contact with health providers to the realities of at-home ESRD treatment. As a result of this collaboration, Ayogo succeeded in securing a $40m agreement with a manufacturer of dialysis equipment to include Ayogo’s support tools as standard parts of hemodialysis treatment in British Columbia, across Canada and throughout the world.