Thryve & WATCH: Post-COVID Monitorting

Since the COVID pandemic started, it has been 5 years, but its effects have left countless patients struggling with fatigue, cognitive issues, shortness of breath, and mental health challenges. Yet access to specialized care remains limited, especially for those living outside urban areas. The WATCH study is tackling this head-on by combining mobile clinics, digital rehabilitation, and wearable data to ensure patients get the help they need, no matter where they live.

The Partnership: 

The WATCH project (Mobile community-based care to manage cross-sectoral therapy for post-COVID-19 in Thuringia) is led by Universitätsklinikum Jena (UK Jena) in collaboration with the Zentrum für Seelische Gesundheit and a network of general practitioners, therapists, and digital health providers across Thuringia.

Funded with €5.8 million by the Innovationsfonds of the Gemeinsamer Bundesausschuss (G-BA), WATCH is part of Germany’s effort to pilot innovative care models that could be adopted nationwide.

Thryve supports the project with the digital infrastructure necessary to integrate and harmonize wearable health data into clinical workflows, making it possible to monitor patients remotely and adjust care plans based on real-world activity and recovery trends.

The Challenge:

Post-COVID syndrome doesn’t follow a predictable course. Symptoms vary by patient and often change over time, making treatment complex. For those in rural regions, access to interdisciplinary expertise is scarce. General practitioners may lack the training or resources to address these cases effectively, leaving patients isolated, untreated, and unable to fully return to their daily lives.

WATCH set out to close this gap by building a care model that unites local accessibility with specialist knowledge, supported by digital monitoring.

The Solution: Hybrid, Data-Driven Care

WATCH combines mobile services, telemedicine, and wearables to deliver tailored interventions:

• The PoCo-Bus: A mobile diagnostic unit bringing lab work and clinical assessments directly to patients in their communities.
• 12-Week Digital Rehab Program: Structured into three modules:
  
  • BRAIN – cognitive training through an app
  • BODY – physical rehabilitation supported by wearable data
  • SOUL – behavioral therapy via video consultations
• Wearable Monitoring: Fitness trackers measure movement, sleep, and stress, feeding real-time data back to clinicians.

With Thryve’s infrastructure, WATCH ensures:

• Secure, GDPR-compliant data transfer
• Standardized, analyzable datasets for clinicians and researchers
• A continuous feedback loop that personalizes care plans

The Results: 

Although still ongoing, WATCH has already demonstrated:

• Expanded access to specialized care for underserved patients
• Actionable insights from continuous wearable monitoring
• Better care coordination between local providers and university hospitals
• A replicable blueprint for hybrid telemedicine and mobile diagnostics in other regions

WATCH proves that high-quality care doesn’t have to be confined to major cities. By pairing on-site diagnostics with digital monitoring and rehab, it ensures Post-COVID patients get the tailored support they need.

Thryve’s role is to provide the secure, scalable data backbone that makes this possible, helping transform real-world signals into smarter, more compassionate healthcare.

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