CONNECTED SMART INSULIN PENS WILL RADICALLY IMPROVE CONVERSATIONS IN DIABETES CARE

Connected smart pens will revolutionise diabetes care in the decade to come, and this upcoming revolution took a big leap this month, when the first of our valued partners within the digital health space, Glooko, released software in 23 countries in 14 different languages, that made both their in-clinic integrated diabetes management solution directed at healthcare professionals as well as their patient facing app (btw, download it today for iOS and Android), compatible with the Novo Nordisk range of connected durable smart devices. For Android based phones, you can upload directly via the phones NFC chip, while on iOS based devices, currently only visualisation of data is enabled at this point and upload is only supported via the in-clinic Glooko diasend box.

The NovoPen? 6 and NovoPen Echo? Plus connected smart pens will be launched during 2019 and beyond. Whether to share the collected injection data is entirely in the hands (pun intended) of the person using the connected smart pens. If people choose to consent to share their data, the process is easy and seamless as shown below in the video, but we recognise that the data collected is the patient's data, not ours, and it is their choice. We, our partners and healthcare professionals need to continuously earn and re-earn the trust to see the data to help improve health for the people willing to share it. Only if people have trust, will they choose to put their pens to their phones to sync and/or bring their connected smart pens to the doctor to sync at the clinic before a consultation.

While it may not be apparent to all today, in 2019, just how huge this will become and how big a shift the introduction of this new data source will be to the management of diabetes, over the next decade, it will. In Novo Nordisk, we look forward to see all our partners introduce this data set into their solutions during 2019 and beyond.

So why does this matter you might ask yourself? and will this even make a difference for the treatment of diabetes? I strongly believe the answer is a resounding YES.

CHANGING THE CONVERSATION BY INTRODUCING UNIQUE DATA THAT UNTIL NOW, DID NOT EXIST

While it may seem odd, having access to valid, credible, complete, unbiased and passively collected data on how medication is taken is not available today. With the launch of connected smart pens that collect and store an accurate and complete log of when and how much medication was taken, we are on a path that will transform clinical practice. When the insulin injection data combined and correlated with other data sources, such as initially CGM/FGM/BGM, I believe it will be possible to close the loop in diabetes care and facilitate more productive and meaningful conversations between healthcare professionals and people living with diabetes.

IS IT REALLY NEEDED? IMPROVING OUTCOMES BY ADDRESSING MEDICATION ADHERENCE

I have yet to meet anyone with a diabetes who didn't want to have their diabetes well-controlled. I don't think such a person exist. So why is adherence to medication not 100% in the real world? I think we all instinctively know why when we look at our own lives.

I often tell the story of my lower pain back problem, where I went to a physiotherapist to get it resolved. I hoped he would give me a nice massage and then be done with it, but that did not happen. Instead, he gave a a set of exercises I had to do, where I should arch my back, back and forth, 10 times, 5 times a day. "Easy" he said, "as you work in an office. Just stand up and do the exercises. it just takes 30 seconds each time". 3 weeks later when I went back and he asked "so have you done your exercises?" I replied "well not all. Perhaps 80% or so", which was untrue - it was more likely 20%, and only the first week. This is unfortunate for me and him as we ended of discussing what to do based on a completely inaccurate basis and he may think the exercises did not address my problem and think "what is then wrong", when the actual problem is that I didn't do them. We didn't get to the root of the problem. I wish we had had the conversation where he said "well S?ren, the problem is that you didn't do your exercises. Is it because they are wrong for you? don't work for your schedule/life? Should we try something else that works better for how you live your life?".

There are many such examples in all our lives. How many do you think take vitamins everyday for a year without forgetting a single day? none! how many remember to brush their teeth twice daily for at least 2 mins every time you brush? and switch their toothbrush at least every three months? few.. if any - because sometimes other things gets in the way - even if we have the ambition to be compliant, life still gets in the way - sometimes. Talking about those times when we forget, when life gets in the way is good. If there are patterns in when we are not compliant where we need to be extra attentive to be compliant so we can avoid/mitigate/address for the future, this is would be beneficial. If those discussions take point of departure in our own lives and own actions? much better.

So it is with people living with diabetes (a systematic review published in Diabetes Care for example is here). The first priority is the to live our lives, not manage our disease(s), so sometimes other things in our lives takes precedence over ensuring 100% compliance with a treatment regimen. And sometimes certain treatment regimens might just not be right with the way people live their lives. Therefore, with connected smart pens and data from glucose sensors and other data sources, we now have the possibility to ensure that healthcare professionals and people with diabetes can have more productive and meaningful discussions that take point of departure in how people live their lives, how they take their medication and what the health outcome is. An illustrative example of a foundation to have such conversations can be seen below.

As connected smart pens become common place over the next decade, I strongly believe the conversations we have with our healthcare professionals will radically transform and improve. This is what has started this month for people living with diabetes and I am excited about this journey and hope you are to. #itisnotabouthteapp #betterconversations #diabetes #digitalhealth #takingpointofdepartureinactualbehavior #designforthebehavioryouwouldliketosee #adherence #compliance