Royal Philips and Netherlands-based Radboud University Medical Center (Radboudumc) today introduced a connected digital health prototype app that enables people living with diabetes and their health care providers to make more confident care decisions while managing the complexity of diabetes self-care.
In its first phase, the app will focus on patients living with diabetes type 1.
The prototype application, under development by Philips, Radboudumc and Salesforce will be available in pilot release by the end of year, with plans to introduce similar connected care solutions addressing other chronic conditions.
"We worked hand in hand with both patients and health care providers when designing this application to map the flow of their daily routines, designed the app to support them in these daily tasks with an intuitive, easy to use app," ck Andrade, director of product management for the HealthSuite Digital Platform for Philips, told eWEEK. "Based on their feedback we included many of their requests, such as visualizing data in ways that allow patients to identify trends in blood glucose readings and the relationships between different factors to help them correct dosage and plan ahead."
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Andrade noted another feature to improve ease of use is an integrated community, which gives patients the ability to connect directly and share data and insights with health care providers, other people with diabetes and their caregivers.
The system, consisting of a mobile patient app and online community, is the first to collect and connect data from electronic medical records, multiple personal health devices – including wireless glucose meters and activity monitors – and patient self-reported data.
Through a smartphone or tablet, the app gives patients continuous access to important parameters such as blood glucose levels, insulin use, and nutrition and provides coaching guidance at home and on the go.
The system is built on the Philips HealthSuite digital platform and its new CareCatalyst, which securely connects devices and collects, integrates and analyzes patient data from connected consumer and medical devices, electronic medical records, and personal health data.
CareCatalyst is a digital toolkit that makes it possible for health systems, institutions and care providers to utilize the power of the HealthSuite digital platform in dedicated localized solutions.
Through this open digital platform, self-measurement sources and overall functionality can be extended as new digital health consumer measurement technologies become available.
"This prototype will be available for people in the Netherlands to use as part of an evaluation for a commercialized version beginning in the fourth quarter of 2015," Andrade said. "Looking beyond the Netherlands, we are considering expanding the prototype development research to other countries with significant numbers of people living with diabetes in the coming months, including the United States."
She noted that in addition to this prototype, Philips will continue to develop new connected health care solutions utilizing the HealthSuite digital platform as part of its ongoing effort to meet the demands of people living with chronic and recurring conditions.
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