Smart companion for an active lifestyle

Just as Laurentiu Oancea is about to put on his sports jacket, his smartphone beeps. Probably his most important digital aid, the NephroCare My Companion app from Fresenius Medical Care, reminds him that he hasn’t taken his medication yet today. Outside, the sun is shining and his mountain bike is all set for the ride. After hesitating briefly, he goes back into the kitchen, takes his medication and, while he is at it, checks his blood pressure. Once the measurement is completed and the current levels appear on the display, he enters them in the app and quickly scrolls to another section, where a tip tells him: “Physical exercise keeps your body fit.” Laurentiu Oancea smiles. Exactly, he thinks, as he leaves the house and hops onto his bike. Laurentiu is a man with an athletic figure. If you met the Romanian, you would never guess that he is seriously ill. And yet his kidney function gradually deteriorated over several years due to malignant hypertension until his kidneys eventually failed completely. As a result, he has relied on regular dialysis since 2015. And the next day, he is lying on a bed at the Fresenius Medical Care dialysis clinic in Pitești, Romania. Laurentiu comes here three times a week for four hours.

The app enables patients like Laurentiu to contribute actively to their therapy and motivates them to apply the necessary self-discipline. “I find the app useful as a daily helper,” says Laurentiu. “What’s more, I like discovering new things and I really enjoy playing around with it.” Because the therapy data in the app is updated promptly and regularly, patients always have a good overview of the state of their health. An incorrect diet or even insufficient physical exercise can be reflected in some parameters shown in the app. Consequently, patients like Laurentiu can request a consultation with their physician, dialysis nurse or dietitian in order to take long-term countermeasures. “I’ve always done a lot of sports, and still do,” says Laurentiu. Cycling is one of his favorite leisure activities. He often goes on long rides through the countryside. “I find it important to think about other things than my dialysis therapy. To avoid getting hung up mentally on this whole situation, I keep myself busy and pursue my hobbies.”

In his home village of Capul Piscului, Laurentiu lives next door to his parents and shares a lovely garden full of old fruit trees and vegetable patches with them. Since falling ill, Laurentiu has started paying more attention to a healthy diet. After getting back from the strenuous dialysis, he sits down at the kitchen table and prepares a salad with cucumber, onions and a little tomato – all homegrown. The app also gives him dietary tips. “If I’m going to get to grips with my treatment, it has to be in a purposeful and forward-looking way,” Laurentiu explains. The fact that he has learned to deal with his illness so well has obviously partly to do with his therapy at the clinic, but also the positive feeling of being able to play his own part. Laurentiu Oancea is optimistic about the future. He points to the wall in the kitchen, where several medals he received during military service are hanging. “I really want to work again,” says Laurentiu, “I feel fit.”