The virtual doctor: An interactive web based tool to support unscheduled visits for cystic fibrosis (cf) patients

Cystic Fibrosis (CF) patients need to meet with their Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) approximately every four months. In-between these scheduled visits, patients may contact the Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) via phone to express any health-related concerns. This often requires a phone evaluation before organizing an unscheduled appointment. Due to the sporadic nature of these phone calls, resources and time are often heavily affected. With the predicted increase of the adult CF patient population, there is a need for better ways to manage and educate patients on their condition. The aim of this ICT intervention is to reduce this effect by creating an online virtual Dr, that can be accessed by the patient from their own home. This Virtual Doctor (Dr) will generate a report and an initial evaluation that will be sent to the MDT to action. The patient is also provided with a response outlining when the team will be in contact. The system includes a Dr avatar with facial animations and 3D scene. The voice of the avatar is generated using Node.js along with the Amazon Web Services Polly. The Web Speech API speech recognition is used to provide the ability to recognize voice context from an audio input; in this case the patient's computer microphone. This allows for the patient's interaction with the avatar and the documentation of the answers. These answers are scored and used as a comparison to the patient's baseline health status. The patient's answers and scores are stored within a database and sent via email to the MDT for evaluation. The score informs the Virtual Dr's response and MDT report. It is anticipated that this tool will be of benefit to both patients and medical staff. By creating such a system, patients can learn about their own condition and health status, while improving time and resource management. A prototype of the system has been created in preparation for pilot testing with adult CF patients.