The Journal of mHealth Vol 2 Issue 1 (February 2015) | Page 30
Predictions for mHealth: What Do We Need to Think About in the Future?
Predictions for
mHealth: What Do We
Need to Think About in
the Future?
By Keith Nurcombe
Keith Nurcombe has worked in healthcare for over twenty years spending the last few years working with businesses in the health and technology space, most
recently building O2 Health where he was Managing Director until the end of 2012, since then he has been providing consultancy services to businesses.
With mHealth growing at the rate that
it is, deployments taking place in lots of
markets and developments in technology
and delivery really increasing, the market
is starting to look at what might happen
in the longer-term and what some of the
questions and issues might be as we go
forward.
I, personally, think that there are some
issues that we have to think about both
as manufacturers/suppliers and also as
commissioners/purchasers of care:
Deployment at scale - is becoming
more critical as commissioners start
to look for solutions that serve larger
cohorts of patients and work across
wider patient groups with multiple conditions and mortalities. So far many of
the deployments we have seen, have
been smaller trails and set-ups looking at patient numbers of perhaps 200
up to 1,000. As the proven capabilities
of these kinds of solutions start to take
hold then we are going to have to think
about deployments that can go towards
50,000 patients, and deal with comorbidities. This will deliver greater challenges
and increase the complexity and scale of
deployments in the community.
Technology – this area is increasingly
interesting. Almost daily, new pieces of
technology, software and devices hit the
market and offer new options and new
capabilities for patients and healthcare professionals. What is clear to me is that just
because a device exists, or can do something in particular, doesn’t mean that we
should make use of that function. This is
about technology being the enabler rather
than the driver and that is key. Technology
should allow us to deploy to more people
and deploy more effectively.
One of the critical things going forward will be to make greater use of the
patient’s own devices rather than giving patients lots of new devices which
they may not be familiar with and most
importantly increases the cost of the
deployment and the solution.
Integration into healthcare systems
and healthcare processes - is for me
the real key issue in the next few years
as projects scale-up and more patients
start to use these kinds of technology.
We have to deliver systems that integrate
into existing processes and allow those
processes to change and reflect the use
of new technologies and solutions. For
me, most importantly is the need for the
patient to see and understand the data
they are collecting and to really understand their condition and how it affects
them. A well-managed and motivated
patient is a patient who is able to selfcare as much as possible. We need to
help patients see and understand their
data while giving healthcare professionals the ability to see the data they need
to manage the patient as cost-effectively
as possible within the healthcare system.
Avoiding duplication of services or
latent capacity within healthcare As always the key is that when we make
change, and we deliver service changes
and improvements, that the capacity that
is no longer used, or needed, is removed
from the system or the cost savings that
technology can deliver will not be found.
As always, these are challenges that can
be overcome and as suppliers and manufacturers we have to work with healthcare
professionals and those who commission
care to deliver the right level of service. n
EXECUTIVE HEALTHCARE CONSULTING
Nurcombe Consulting delivers interim senior management support, strategic business analysis, change management as well as
development of plans and capability for entry into the healthcare market in the UK and globally. Experience at end to end business
reviews and then implementing required changes to deliver strategic goals and change of direction for businesses. Management support at senior level within organisations to deliver change as well as day to day management of the running of the business.
Support in delivering new business opportunities into new markets in the healthcare space with considerable experience in:
• Pharmaceuticals
• OTC and Consumer brands
• Healthcare delivery to patients in their home
• Tele-health and tele-care provision
• Provision of staff and care for patients in their home and also in NHS and private care settings
• Development of private healthcare opportunities working with the NHS and other state providers
• Digital Health and the use and deployment of technology to support patient and health outcomes
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With over twenty years experience in healthcare locally, regionally and globally this consultancy has the experience to deliver value
to your business. For more information please visit www.nurcombeconsulting.com or email [email protected]
February 2015