A Doctor in Your Pocket


By Betsy Raymond Stevenson, posted January 16, 2012

My Smartphone Is A Microscope. What Can Yours Do?


By Betsy Raymond Stevenson, posted October 6, 2011

Healthful Reminders for Medications, Beyond an Apple a Day


By Betsy Raymond Stevenson, posted September 30, 2010

Communications, Collaboration and Compliance


By Betsy Raymond Stevenson, posted November 10, 2009

In Ron Winslow’s WSJ story this morning, cardiologist Vincent Bufalino points out that “Only 5% to 10% of a person’s healthcare life happens in the hospital.”  No one wants to live in a hosptial, but, human nature being what it is, many people’s daily lifestyle choices and irregular follow-through with their medicines are hurting their health and straining their budgets.  “Get with the Guidelines,” a program run by the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology, is collecting data from doctors on their outpatient results so standards of care can be set and shared based on patient outcomes.  Best practices tracked so far are strong on communications. Do doctors remember to ask if their patient has diabetes or if  he/she has quit smoking?  The program is already positively influencing treatment. 94% of heart patients in participating hospitals were discharged with a prescription for a beta blocker, compared with an average of 78% before the program started.

It seems to me that there is a win-win opportunity here for pharmaceutical and  biotech companies to collaborate with physician and patient advocacy organizations to develop smart phone apps that will help patients, and those of us who want to avoid becoming patients, make better daily choices in an integrated way.  Sending patients reminders to take their medicines is good, but wouldn’t a more comprehensive app that includes excercise, food choices, even healthy cooking tips, be better?  And, what if these more comprehensive apps were targeted for different patient demographics, i.e.; teens, parents, men, women, seniors?  And, what if the apps were fun?  What if they were games or contests, or simply let patients track and score points?

Do you know of apps, or similar programs, that are already out there and being used?  Do you have other thoughts on ways the industry can collaborate and create to improve compliance and overall health care outcomes?
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