The Need for Health Care Providers to be Proactive, not Reactive

Last Monday I celebrated the 3rd anniversary of having a triple bypass. I say “celebrate” because I was smart enough to recognize a heart attack was coming on and got to the hospital in time for them to stabilize me — I was minutes away from having permanent damage or, perhaps, dying. As you can imagine, this was a life-changing experience for me and forced me to rethink my health. Three years later, I am doing very well and, although I am struggling with controlling some diabetic issues, since that time, I have become more aware of my body and how to handle these medical issues in a manageable way.

Although I have great doctors and various health professionals that guide me, the fact I have access to all types of information on how to take better care of myself and am highly motivated to do so has been important for my recovery. But it is the inclusion of wearable health monitoring devices as well as many health related apps that have really helped me make progress with these two diseases.

Right after I got home from the surgery I was told I needed to walk, exercise more, and eat better. The lack of attention to these things I am sure contributed to my serious health issues. I was also told I needed to change my eating habits. As a serious foodie this was perhaps the hardest thing to deal with. The first thing I did was get a wearable health monitoring device that recorded steps, calories burned and heart rate. I try and push myself to get in my 10K steps and monitor calories and heart rate throughout the day.

I recently wrote a Tech.pinions column that shared stats about health monitoring and made the case the health movement is sustainable. As health monitoring is built into smartwatches, clothing and external bands, that feature could become second nature to a person since it does it in the background.

However, what they and their health professionals do with that data is the real issue. In my case, the walking, heart rate and calories burned give me key data points to factor into how I exercise and what I eat. In this case, that data is good for me and is actionable. But for those of us who have serious health issues, that data should also be very important to our health providers. Today, I am responsible for that data and the only way I can use it with my health providers is when I meet with them and share info so it helps them tailor my health program to meet my needs. In that context, they are reactive. But in a digital world where data can be sent instantly and used for making decisions rapidly, the role of a health provider should become proactive.

In early March. I went to Hawaii on business and while there, my diabetic sugar readings went haywire. Within days, they shot up about 65% over what they were the week before. None of the medications I was on worked to keep them in range. I tried to reach my doctor while in Hawaii and for a full week after I got home but could not. Even worse, it was a full month away from seeing him in person. So, for most of that month, I had to work with the meds I was on with little to no change in blood sugar readings.

The role of health wearables and digital health analytics and direct pipelines to my doctor could have changed this scenario dramatically.

If my blood testing kit was tied to a wireless device and, more importantly, those blood readings could have been sent directly to the doctor daily, he could have taken a proactive role in my care instead of waiting for me to come in and react to the problem. I know that my doctor is very busy and does not want to be bombarded with data but, if the program was written correctly, it could have included emergency parameters built in that said, “If Tim’s blood sugar readings were above a certain range for 5 days in row, alert me and set up a time for me to deal with this.”

As I study Apple’s overall health vision, I believe what I just described is a key part of their strategy. They know it is one thing to record the data but another to get data to a health professional in a safe, secure, and timely manner. In fact, I believe that within five years, Apple will become the largest broker of heath data in the world. I also think Apple will end up being the catalyst that revolutionizes the health industry when it comes to connecting a patient to their health provider and creating a live, interactive pipeline between the two that makes health care providers proactive instead of reactive when it comes to a patient’s health.

Why am I so certain Apple will take this leadership role in health? When Steve Jobs got sick, I was told he became very frustrated with the health care system and infuriated they could not keep his records straight. It was often hard to even find the info needed to manage his overall health profile. I believe he made it one of his last missions to try and bring digital order to the health system and, in the end, this would be a key part of his lasting legacy. Tim Cook and Apple’s management are very aware of this vision and I believe are committed to making it happen for Steve and bring the kind of reform needed to make it possible for patient health records to be in order and to make practitioners more active in helping people stay healthy.

Mobile health monitoring tools and apps have been great in helping me deal with my health problems and I am looking forward to a day when my health providers are more like a partner to me in my quest for better health. The technology is there for them to be more proactive in helping me stay well.