Singapore American • January 2015
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January 2015
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Digital Health 2015: Singapore Gets Connected and Quantified
THEME: LIFE BALANCE
By Dr. Steven Tucker
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dds are that you or someone around your holiday table received a shiny new fitness tracker or smart watch. Industry reports describe wearable technology as a 4.1 billion US dollar market in 2014 and expect it to surge to over 90 billion US dollars by 2018. And while some people may be on the sidelines (waiting for the Apple watch, perhaps), there are currently dozens of amazing wearable technologies that bridge across the form and function of smart watches, fitness trackers and medical devices. Wearable technology is not actually a new concept; it has a history dating back as far at the seventeenth century. The Qing Dynasty was the first to miniaturize the abacus and place it on a ring. We certainly have come a long way from the abacus, as devices today can measure everything from steps taken to continuous heart rate to diagnosing migraine headaches and measuring the force of impact in contact sports.
Wearable devices are creating a new culture of health and allowing anyone to gain insight into behavior, habits and the personal decisions associated with health and risk of chronic disease. Behavior is the root cause of many chronic conditions, as many adults do not meet recommendations for physical activity, sleep or even medication compliance. And chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, and cancer account for nearly eighty percent of health spending. With eighty-six million Americans having pre-diabetes and seventy percent being overweight or obese, addressing chronic behavior and health costs should be no surprise. And of course, one rarely hears of personal healthcare costs going down. Wearable devices have been shown to make people healthier by creating awareness and encouraging empowerment. Recently the
Mayo Clinic placed activity trackers on patients during recovery after surgery. Patients with the most activity were much more likely to be discharged home sooner. The real take-away for the doctors was not the tracker itself but the data and its meaning. Trackers are transforming health promotion and chronic disease prevention by strategically engaging people with technology. Importantly, they are now being recognized as valuable data silos to connect to electronic health records and to be shared with physicians. Some of the newest devices, outlined in the article, also illustrate a critical step in technology and health—connected synergy, also known as the Internet of Things. That is, while tech enthusiasts initially used activity trackers like Fitbit, these activity tracking functions are now being absorbed into devices everywhere, and especially into apps and smart phones. Additionally, we are now talking about the Continued on page 15
American Association of Singapore Strategic Partners