Digital Health bits | February 12th 2020
Draft NICE guidelines suggest apps can support behavioural change
Draft guidelines from the National Institute of Clinical Institute (NICE) have advised that apps and online programmes that support behavioural change could help people achieve their health goals.
Published on 24 January, the guidelines suggest that digital interventions including apps, wearable devices and online platforms may people be more physically active, manage their weight, quit smoking and reduce alcohol intake.
The recommendations are in line with the NHS Long Term Plan, though NICE states digital tools should be offered in addition to existing health and care services, not as a replacement.
Paul Chrisp, director of NICE’s centre for guidelines, said: “Digital interventions for behaviour change could help people make important improvements to their lifestyle, which may reduce their risk of developing serious chronic conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
“Clinicians may choose to consider these interventions as an option to work alongside traditional health care services towards a change in behaviour.”
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Monitoring the spread of flu with Fitbit
A study by the Scripps Research Translational Institute published in The Lancet Digital Health in recent days illustrates how Fitbit users’ data can be used to track diseases.
The researchers obtained data, anonymously, of 200,000 people who used a Fitbit wearable device from March 1, 2016 to March 1, 2018 in the United States.
The researchers included users who worn a Fitbit for at least 60 days and used it throughout the trial period, residing in five states: California, Texas, New York, Illinois and Pennsylvania.
The researchers were able to count on a data set of 47,249 patients with over 13 million measurements of resting heart rate (RHR) and sleep duration.
They then compared sensor data with weekly estimates of flu-like illness rates (ILI) at the state level provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), identifying weeks when Fitbit users showed high RHR and increased sleep levels.
The researchers found that Fitbit data significantly improved ILI predictions in all five states. By accessing this data, according to researchers, it may be possible to improve flu surveillance in real-time with great geographical accuracy.
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Read more: https://digital-health.blog/2020/01/26/monitoring-the-spread-of-flu-with-fitbit/
And here a second view on the same topic:
Could Your Fitness Tracker Know You Have the Flu Before You Do?
According to a recent study published in The Lancet Digital Health, fitness trackers may be able to let you know if you’re in the early stages of the flu before you realize it yourself.
When you have the flu, your resting heart rate goes up and your sleep quality goes down— both of which your fitness tracker can identify.
Although that capability isn’t on trackers just yet, it may be in the near future, suggests a new study published in The Lancet Digital Health. And when it is, that could be a big step forward for improving public health efforts to contain infectious disease.
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Read more: https://www.bicycling.com/news/a30678966/fitness-trackers-flu-prediction-study/
Matt Hancock reiterates need to digitally up-skill NHS workforce
UK Health secretary Matt Hancock has spoken of the need to up-skill the NHS workforce to prepare it for a digital-first future.
Speaking at a Parliament and Health Tech conference hosted by the Health Tech Alliance on 28 January, Hancock said there was “no excuse” for NHS organisations not to have a digital and tech leader on every board.
“And when I talk about leadership I don’t just mean people with the word ‘information’ on their name badge,” he told an audience in Westminster.
“Every CEO needs to be comfortable and competent in leading digital transformation; every board needs to know what questions to ask, how to hold their CEO to account; every medical director and chief nurse needs to know how technology is going to transform what their teams do and lead that adoption.”
Hancock warned if digital transformation was left solely to the IT department “it will fail”.
“If everyone owns it, if it’s clinically led, if the board and the CEO and the top team all have skin in the game, then, and only then, has it a chance of success,” he added.
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Babylon Health to create city-wide digital health service with UK hospital
Babylon Health, the company behind the GP at Hand phone app being piloted in the NHS, has partnered with a UK hospital in a bid to create the world’s first integrated digital health system serving an entire city.
The 10-year partnership with Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust aims to provide remote access to GPs and hospital specialists at times that suit patients.
The first new services are expected to go live before the end of this year.
Other services planned include live monitoring of patients with chronic conditions and personalised care plans developed with Babylon’s AI technology.
These will be delivered through a single, free app for maximum convenience and to avoid unnecessary travel.
Financial details of the agreement have not been fully agreed and a spokesperson for the company told pharmaphorum this is under discussion after both parties signed a memorandum of understanding.
But according to Babylon it is expected that both parties will contribute to the project, which is seen as a “joint venture” between the two organisations.
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Royal College of GPs launches LGBT online training modules for doctors
The Royal College of General Practitioners has launched a suite of e-learning resources to help GPs provide the best possible care to LGBT patients.
The suite, designed in partnership with the Government Equalities Office, contains six online training modules that provide GPs and other healthcare professionals access to evidence-based, up-to-date information to deal with the unique health needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) patients.
The online tool also provides access to podcasts and screencasts.
The first-of-its-kind learning hub is designed to be easily accessible to busy GPs, with modules ranging from 15-30 minutes in length.
Professor Martin Marshall, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: “GPs are highly-trained to deliver high-quality, non-judgemental care to all our patients. We want to ensure LGBT patients receive good, safe care, and that they can access our services when they need them.
“We hope that the new e-learning resources – based on the latest clinical evidence – will prove valuable in supporting frontline GPs and our teams to deliver the best possible care for every LGBT patient we see.”
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Note: Opinions expressed are solely my own and do not express the views or opinions of my employer