LUCID – LLM-Supported Chatbot for Chronic Disease Management

Worldwide, chronic non-communicable diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases like COPD, are among the leading causes of death. At the same time, rare chronic diseases, such as post-infectious syndromes, also pose complex medical challenges that negatively affect the quality of life of those affected. In many cases, a cure is not possible. Therefore, symptom management and improving quality of life are the therapeutic focus in chronic diseases and can be achieved particularly through the active integration of patients into the treatment process. Traditional treatment methods are increasingly reaching their limits, as they often rely on time-consuming and cost-intensive inpatient hospital stays or regular doctor’s appointments. Digital solutions such as LUCID can expand patients’ knowledge, strengthen self-management and enable continuous support.

As part of LUCID, an LLM-based health coach is being developed in the form of a chatbot. It supports users in strengthening their health literacy through personalized knowledge transfer and targeted recommendations. For this purpose, a demonstrator is being developed that enables interaction with those affected via a user-centered interface within a smartphone application. Based on WHO guidelines, the demonstrator will communicate disease-specific knowledge in a transparent way, support users in learning necessary skills and thereby increase confidence in their own actions. Through continuous, empathetic and transparent support for patients, gaps in care can be closed and trust can be built. Aspects such as modularity and scalability, personalization, as well as transparency, validity and data security constitute the project’s innovation. The system must integrate contextual information, ensure explainability and establish a medical knowledge database. In this way, LUCID transfers innovative AI technologies into application-oriented, patient-centered solutions and contributes to strengthening the medical technology sector in North Rhine-Westphalia.

The demonstrator will be evaluated in a feasibility study with regard to acceptance, usability and safety. The overarching goal is to develop a digital health coach for personalized support in the independent management of chronic diseases.

In addition to the cooperation partner Fimo Health GmbH, whose application forms the basis for the digital health coach, University Hospital Essen and University Hospital Bonn are also partners in the project.