Every day, many Americans wear devices that count steps and check their heart rates. New hardware, software, and apps are continually transforming how health is managed through real-time personalized information gained through the use of wearable technology. These devices can help employees be more active, detect and manage health conditions, avoid serious illnesses, and even connect virtually with doctors and care teams. It is important for employers to leverage these advancements in digital healthcare, as their use can lead to healthier, more productive employees — and potentially lower care costs for your organization.
Sophisticated Devices Can Improve Health
Heart rate monitors are now standard on most smartwatches, and some have FDA approval for detecting abnormalities such as atrial fibrillation, a major cause of stroke. As these devices become more sophisticated, the number of people using them to manage chronic conditions and detect symptoms of serious diseases will likely increase, which can reduce unnecessary trips to the emergency room for conditions like asthma.
People are also becoming more interested in sharing their wearable data with their doctors and insurers. A survey conducted by HIMSS showed more than half of doctors found wearable technology in healthcare helpful for monitoring their patients. These commercial and personal-grade wearables monitor health conditions and vitals, track medications, follow the recovery of post-op patients, and track sleep. Use of these devices can increase access to care, reduce patient loss to follow-up, and reduce health burden and overall cost.
Types Of Wearable Technology
The advancement of wearable technology and growing demand from consumers to take control of their own health has influenced the medical industry, insurers, care providers, and technology companies to bring new insights to support employee well-being and encourage positive long-term health changes. Examples of current wearable technology include:
- Wearable Fitness Trackers. As one of the original forms of wearable tech, fitness trackers are equipped with sensors to track a user’s steps, activity, and sometimes heart rate. They can also provide health and fitness recommendations by syncing to various smartphone apps.
- Smartwatches. Once only used to count steps and tell time, smartwatches have now transformed into clinically viable healthcare tools. Apple’s Series 8 model features a blood oxygen saturation monitor, a native sleep tracker, an FDA-approved electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor, upgraded heart health monitoring, and fall detection that will automatically call 911 if it detects the wearer is not moving.
- Biosensors And Smart Patches. The development of artificial intelligence (AI)–powered remote monitoring tools have allowed doctors to keep track of patients’ health. The Philips BX100 wearable biosensor is a self-adhesive patch allowing patients to move around while collecting data on movement patterns, heart rate, respiratory rate, and temperature. Continuous glucose monitors let people with diabetes track and share their blood glucose levels in real time with family and doctors. Wearable ECG monitors, blood pressure monitors, and other sensors provide remote patient monitoring, which can play a role in virtual primary care. Other sensors provide feedback for physiotherapy sessions to help improve musculoskeletal health.
- Wearable Drug Delivery Systems. New systems have been developed for drug delivery, such as an ocular ring for the treatment of glaucoma or controlled release systems for cancer treatment and insulin therapy.
Creating A Healthier Workforce Through Innovation
Companies are seeing the benefits of offering wearable healthcare technology to employees. According to Insider Intelligence research, a healthier corporate culture is shown to reduce employee turnover. Employers who offered five or more well-being best practices, such as behavioral health programs or including spouses in well-being programs, had an average turnover of 18% for the year studied, compared to 29% for those that offered two or fewer.
Some 75% of users agree that wearables help them engage with their healthcare. If your business uses a health app like SydneySM Health, you can leverage the included workplace challenge feature to encourage employee participation. Sydney integrates technology like Fitbit®, Garmin®, iHealth®, Misfit, and Apple® HealthKit®. Plus, Sydney offers a built-in nutrition tracker for additional nutritional support. Other programs, such as the Asthma Digital study and Sleep Solutions, use wearables and sensors to support condition diagnoses and provide personalized support for asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and obstructive sleep apnea.
Wearable technology also incentivizes behavior that may reduce hospital visits and readmissions, detect health issues earlier, and help employees manage chronic conditions. Research from Augusta University Medical Center showed that a wearable device registered an 89% reduction in patient deterioration into preventable cardiac or respiratory arrest. These behaviors could help to avoid disability claims, reduce sick time, and spend less on healthcare costs.
The increased uses of wearable health technology will influence insurers, health providers, and companies to take advantage of their benefits. With the amount of health information they provide, wearables can bring new insights to support employee well-being and encourage positive long-term health changes.
Sydney Health is offered through an arrangement with Carelon Digital Platforms, a separate company offering mobile application services on behalf of your health plan ©2020-2022. The Virtual Primary Care experience is offered through an arrangement with Hydrogen Health.