STARS-Health partners focused their latest international working meeting (23–24 March 2026), held at the Silesian University in Opava, Czech Republic, on the next stages of project implementation.

The meeting brought together representatives of the STARS EU project consortium from the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the Czech Republic over two days. During this time, partners reviewed progress achieved so far, shared updates from the different work areas, and coordinated the next actions.

Particular attention was given to key project activities, including needs analysis, the development and adaptation of digital tools, as well as the preparation of educational and support activities for caregivers. The programme included working sessions, presentations of preliminary results, and discussions on upcoming pilot testing and the practical implementation of project outcomes.

The meeting held in Opava marked another important milestone in the collaboration of the consortium, composed of five STARS EU members, and helped further strengthen joint work on solutions applicable to real-life health and care settings.

 

*STARS-Health is a project funded by the European Partnership on Transforming Health and Care Systems (THCS).

The STARS-Health Project, part of the STARS EU framework, recently presented its roadmap to guide older adults in the use of digital health management services, thereby contributing more effectively to reducing health inequalities among the senior population.

Led by Hanze University of Applied Sciences, together with the universities of La Laguna (Spain), West (Sweden), Silesian (Czech Republic) and Bragança (Portugal), STARS-Health officially began its journey with a workshop held in Groningen (the Netherlands). The event also included an online launch, joined by patient organisations, healthcare professionals, educators and researchers.

Opening the session, Rima Dijkstra, STARS EU coordinator, highlighted the importance of collaboration in initiatives of this kind, which are so vital to society. This was further emphasised by Prof. Dr Hans Hobbelen, researcher and professor at Hanze University of Applied Sciences, who warned about the growing number of older adults against a backdrop of a progressively shrinking healthcare workforce — a challenge that underlines the urgent need for projects such as this.

The session continued with presentations, follow-up and updates on the project — developed within the framework of the Thematic Interest Group (TIG) Healthy Ageing — led by the different Work Package leaders. Throughout, participants reaffirmed their strong commitment to the shared mission: to empower older adults with low health literacy by improving access to and use digital services.

Project phases

The first phase of STARS-Health focuses on analysing the current situation of older adults, informal caregivers and healthcare professionals struggling with digital tools. The second phase involves conducting interviews in Sweden, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Spain and Portugal.

The project will only select digital applications that meet strict usability criteria for older adults, co-create a digital environment in which users and professionals can jointly select the most suitable apps, and develop training programmes to support professionals in guiding both older adults and their caregivers.

In addition to the professionals involved, students will play an active role by identifying and classifying apps in their own countries — a clear example of co-creation in action. STARS-Health will also collaborate with @Label2Enable and other European initiatives such as #Care about IT, #Health Noord, #HealthTech in Society and #Proeftuin Toegankelijke Digitale Zorg, which work towards more accessible and inclusive digital healthcare. These synergies broaden the project’s reach and reinforce its impact across Europe.

Research team

The project’s research team, comprising five of the nine partners of STARS EU along with the Canary Islands Health Service (SCS), is led by Prof. Dr Johannes Hobbelen and Dr. Sandra Jorna-Lakke (Hanze University of Applied Sciences); Margareta Karlsson (University West); Rui Pedro Lopes (Polytechnic Institute of Bragança); Sara Darias-Curvo (University of La Laguna); Markéta Skalná (Silesian University in Opava); and Lilisbeth Perestelo-Pérez (Canary Islands Health Service).

STARS-Health will run for three years with funding of €912,060, granted by the European Partnership on Transforming Health and Care Systems (THCS). This is a co-funded action under the Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Framework Programme (2021–2027) of the European Union.

STARS EU will focus on improving the capacity of older patients with lower health and digital literacy. The research initiative, called STARS-Health, led by the Hanze University (The Netherlands) together with University of La Laguna (Spain), the Evaluation Unit of the Canary Islands Health Service (SESCS-SCS), University West (Sweden), Silesian University of Opava (Czechia), and Polytechnic University of Bragança (Portugal), seeks to help older patients to understand and use digital services in order to prevent and manage health conditions, empower patients and improve communication with their caregivers.

All these measures are ultimately aimed at contributing to reducing inequalities in access to healthcare, the ultimate goal of STARS-Health, the first project of the alliance in which five partner universities participate, financed with European funds, whose overall budget amounts to almost one million euros.

To achieve the objectives set, an application called FindMyApps, originally developed for people with mild dementia, will be redesigned for older adults with Lower Health and Digital Literacy (LHDL). In addition to this application, the project addresses the development of training programs aimed at caregivers in primary, hospital and community care environments.

In the development of integrated care, it is essential to take into account a series of specific cares, which is why STARS-Health project starts with the identification of the needs of elderly patients with LHDL, as well as those of their caregivers; the review of digital services designed for these people; the redesign and implementation of FindMyApps and specialized communication training for professionals specialized in elderly care.

As indicated by those responsible for STARS-Health, developed within the scope of the Thematic Interest Group (TIG) Healthy Ageing, the results of this project will not only have an impact on the health of older adults with LHDL, but will also contribute to relieving pressure on health and primary care centers, and improving communication between patients and caregivers. “The objective is to promote secondary and tertiary prevention in primary, hospital and community care for these people.”

Promotion of new prevention strategies

The initiative will also provide a boost for new prevention strategies and improve equity in access to health care, especially for residents in rural areas. Another of its benefits is the possible reduction of pressure on the health and care system, brought about by the improvement of caregivers’ performance and job satisfaction due to the use of support tools.

It should be noted that caregivers support patients manage their own health by using digital tools, such as apps, medical portals, or monitoring devices. Many of these caregivers and patients have difficulty finding, understanding or using health information in digital media, so they need an integrated and effective health care system to guide them on their journey from hospitals to community care services.

The fact that 42% of the population in Europe has a low level of health literacy influences the quality of care, increases pressure on health systems and exacerbates inequalities, especially in rural areas. Recent data indicate that lower patient health literacy is linked to a higher prevalence of chronic diseases, hospitalisations and doctor visits, a fact that puts pressure on the health care system’s secondary and tertiary prevention programs.

Research team

The team of researchers of the project, in which five of the nine partners that make up STARS EU participate, is headed by Sandra Jorna-Lakke (Hanze), the project leader and coordinator; Hans Hobbelen (Hanze University of Applied Sciences); Margareta Karlsson (University West); Rui Pedro Lopes (Polytechnic University of Bragança); Sara Darias-Curvo and Ángel Acebes (University of La Laguna); Yvetta Vrublova (Silesian University in Opava), together with the Canary Islands Health Service, represented by Lilisbeth Perestelo-Pérez.

STARS-Health, which starts next April, will last three years and has funding of 912,060 euros, granted by the European Association for the Transformation of Health and Care Systems (THCS). This is a co-financing action that is developed under the framework of the European Union’s (EU) Horizon Europe Research and Innovation (R+I) Programme for the period 2021-2027.