By DANIELLE COOKSON
The use of health monitored app technology is about to change the impact on healthcare in the United States. Not only can health professionals monitor these apps, but they give patients the range to monitor themselves and learn more about the state of their health. We are entering the age of digital health.
Various patients across the United States can monitor their sleeping habits, blood pressure, heart rate, cholesterol readings, blood sugar levels and insulin intake in the privacy of their own home. This data that is recorded, with the help of an app-controlled device, can be automatically synced to your smartphone, tablet, and your doctor’s database.
Ronald Cedola, 68, of Rutherford uses an app for a diabetic that allows him to control his insulin intake and monitor his blood levels.
“I used to rely on those old needles to inject my insulin and would have to write down when I took it and how much I took. It was really a pain, trying to remember all of this information. My sugar would go low often because it was hard to keep track,” said Cedola.
“But now that I’ve switched to modern insulin technology, I’ve had less spells and with the push of a button, I get my insulin and I know how much,” Cedola said.
What Can These Apps Do?
A surgeon and behavioral economist at Imperialist College in London, Dominic King, spoke at the TechCrunch Disrupt conference in the beginning of October and commented that digital health is the idea that we use mobile phones and tablet devices to make health care delivery more effective and cost effective.
Apple Health App for iOS 8. PHOTO/ value walk.com
These devices can possibly cut down on face-to-face doctor visits, making self-monitoring more accessible and easier for patients.
For example, the new iOS 8 update for Apple products included a new app called Apple Health. While the app itself doesn’t track the information, it pulls information from your other health apps and displays its findings in a single dashboard for you to see.
Experts say that aggregation apps like Apple’s Health can offer users a new experience while allowing them to keep the apps they’ve become accustomed to using.
Glooko; the app and device. PHOTO / medgadget.com
Glooko allows users with diabetes to download their blood glucose readings to their smartphones, and share it with their health care provider.
How Can These Apps Help?
Jim Taschetta, chief marketing officer for iHealth recently told Healthline news that iHealth helps turn your mobile device into a personal mobile health companion and that the smartphone will become central to a person’s life. “We’ve taken these medical grade devices, typically used by medical professionals, and turned them into products you can use at home.”
Ramapo nursing student, Danielle Neary, thinks that mobile health can one day be successful, but needs work before people begin to rely on these digital health methods.
“This health-app breakthrough is unbelievable yet expected turn for the world of technology. The idea that you can monitor your own health is something that all patients should learn to do, but I also believe this digital health technology needs more work before people begin relying on them wholeheartedly,” Neary said.
“I think we need to make sure patients know how to use these devices to monitor their health and make sure that professionals fully understand the concept because digital mistakes can be bad but the overall benefits could be good,” said Neary.
Does Digital Health Take Doctors Out of the Equation?
Ramapo nursing graduate, Teresa Elfstrom sees the benefits of health apps and wearable devices, but is concerned about the main problems that can come with it.
“I can just see the problems people will have now just by having their medical records electronically available. What if wrong dosages of medicine were entered by mistake?” Elfstrom explained.
Related Links:
Low Hanging Fruit for Digital Health Startups by TechCrunch