Jana Holmar

Kidney failure and the need for dialysis are rising, increasing pressure on healthcare systems and expectations for treatment quality. This project addresses a critical gap by developing an optical sensor for real-time assessment of dialysis quality, enabling continuous monitoring of under-monitored uremic toxin removal. Moving beyond single-point measurements, the approach supports data-driven and patient-centred treatment optimization. The project combines technology development with clinical validation and practical implementation, involving a leading industrial partner, a clinical centre, a professional network, and a university of applied sciences. This ensures both relevance and a clear pathway to real-world use. The expected outcome is a clinically validated sensor prototype with strong potential for further development into a market-ready solution, contributing to improved treatment outcomes, innovation in health technologies, and academic workforce development.

The overall goal of the project is to increase the number of healthy life years of the population. Currently, Estonia has recorded one of the lowest number of healthy life years at birth in the EU. To achieve this goal, three closely related areas of digital health are researched, developed and piloted. We use the standardized data exchange environment and digital data of the Estonian health information system (EHIS) to develop applications that increase the use of data collected by the person for health promotion, prevention and control of chronic conditions. Second, we focus on sensors and digital applications supported by artificial intelligence (AI) to allow a person to collect both biosignals and textual data in machine-readable form. With this, we speed up the detection of health risks and reduce the healthcare workload. Thirdly, we develop various AI methods by combining the data in EHIS and the Health Insurance Fund's database, as well as the data collected by the person.