From the January/February 2018 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
Applications of patient-generated data
The entire health care ecosystem has been evolving with IoT-based technology platforms. IoT enables consumer-centric care from an integrated set of services from the providers, payers, medical device manufacturers and life sciences companies. All these entities in the health care value chain are shifting from a product-centric view to a patient view. The patient is in the middle of it all, no longer the product. IoT plays a pivotal role in bringing patient data and the care team together to improve patient engagement across the continuum of care.
As patient-generated data use increases, three areas in particular offer a growing evidence base for value in improving health outcomes, reducing cost and expanding access to care.
1. Chronic-disease management and home care: Continuous data streams from patients’ devices to optimally manage narrow sets of known health issues, such as diabetes, measuring potentially concerning deviations from normal parameters.
2. Short-term care planning: Event-specific data for a finite time period, or epoch of care, to customize care and support compliance to treatment regimens through education, feedback, reminders and monitoring.
3. Population-based evidence creation: High volumes of data to better understand how certain determinants of health affect patient populations and inform treatment guidelines.
The way forward
The use of patient-generated data presents an opportunity for cost savings, health outcome improvements and patient engagement by partnering with patients in many aspects of their health. The challenges for health care organizations are substantial but surmountable. As health care evolves toward outcome-focused care, patient-generated data can allow providers to deliver care tailored to individual patients, transforming the way care is delivered from sporadic, minimal interactions over large spans of time to a more patient-centered and ongoing relationship between patients and their providers, allowing patients to not only live longer, but thrive.
About the author: Bipin Thomas is a renowned thought leader on consumer-centric health care transformation. Thomas is a board member of HealthCare Business News magazine. Thomas is a senior executive at Flex, where he is leading business innovation by deploying cross-industry solutions with intelligent products and connecting key industry stakeholders. Thomas is a former senior executive at Accenture and UST Global, where he implemented strategic digital initiatives across the care continuum.
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