The name Cynara is the genus for artichokes, which are highly prized in the southern part of Alicante, where the initial development team is located. But the name is also symbolic of the way the portal’s many functionalities, sometimes layered and overlapping, are like petals of an artichoke, Bosch says. Ribera’s use of Microsoft tools is similarly layered. It employs Dynamics 365 Contact Center, OpenAI models for generative AI projects, Azure Machine Learning tools for non-generative AI applications, Microsoft Fabric, Dynamics Business Central and Microsoft 365 Copilot.
Through Cynara Citizen, Ribera health professionals can track health indicators from patients – with particular focus on those with chronic diseases – to quickly address problems without waiting until the patients’ next appointment. Some chronically ill patients might tend to do nothing until their condition worsens to the point that they have to go to the emergency room; through Cynara Citizen, health professionals can check key health indicators remotely and proactively tell the patient what to do to avoid a health emergency.
“We have linked the app with clinical results,” Bosch says. “Patients are getting better blood glucose control and not going to the emergency room as often.” Level 3 patients, those with the most complex cases of chronic conditions, who were enrolled in the Cynara Citizen Population Health Management Program showed a 23 percent drop in emergency room visits and an 18 percent decrease in readmissions within 30 days, compared with a year earlier, which was before Cynara Citizen launched, according to Ribera. The patients had been in the clinical program enhanced with technology for at least 12 months. Ribera compared the level of use of the services of patients before and after being included in the program.
More broadly, Cynara Citizen, which Ribera developed with Microsoft technology, can reduce care gaps, helping patients follow their health plans so they are less likely to have to go to the emergency room. By seeing in real time whether, for example, a diabetic patient has a drop in glucose levels, Ribera health professionals can call the patient and get them to react before the glucose levels fall to the point that an ambulance has to be called, or that the patient falls into a coma. Because patients know who the professionals are on their care team and can message them in addition to making appointments, Ribera believes patients feel they are getting good care and good access, Bosch says. Since the app runs on Microsoft Azure, it can be easily and securely accessed from nearly anywhere.