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- Title
Health apps, wearables, and sensors: The advancing frontier of digital health.
- Authors
Kendall Ho; Christopher Yao; Lauscher, Helen Novak
- Abstract
The proliferation of mobile technologies that can measure and gather a variety of data has increased public interest in using consumer electronics to take ownership of personal health and wellness. Apps, wearables, and sensors can unobtrusively gauge physiological and emotional states and collect, quantify, and monitor data regarding a user's day-to-day behaviors, can provide timely and patient-centred care to those living at a distance with chronic disease, and can be used to coordinate care when multiple providers are involved, reducing costs to the health care system. In all cases, merely tracking data is not enough to maintain health behaviors long-term, and the software must also incorporate motivational constructs important for the adoption and habituation of healthrelated behaviors. Even though all of these technologies are promising, further research is needed to validate their use and long-term impact and to identify possible risks, from physiological harm to breaching of privacy and confidentiality with insecure devices, and how to mitigate any risks. Before recommending devices or platforms to patients, physicians should experiment with the technologies themselves so they understand the functions and limitations. As well, physicians should be active agents in these evolutionary times, guiding patients, advocating for evidence to support the use of technologies, and participating in the development and incorporation of technology in patient wellness journeys.
- Publication
British Columbia Medical Journal, 2017, Vol 59, Issue 10, p503
- ISSN
0007-0556
- Publication type
Academic Journal