Health Monitoring And Wearables
For millennia individuals relied on physicians to inform them about their own bodies and to some extent, this practice is still applied today. However, the relatively new field of wearables is changing this. Wearable health devices (WHDs) are an upcoming technology that allow for constant measurement of certain vital signs under various conditions.
The key to their early adoption and success is their application flexibility—the users are now able to track their activity while running, meditating, or when underwater. The goal is to provide individuals with a sense of power over their own health by allowing them to analyze the data and manage their own health. Simply, At first look, a wearable device might look like an ordinary band or watch; however, these devices bridge the gap between multiple scientific disciplines such as biomedical engineering, materials science, electronics, computer programming, and data science, among many others.
It would not be an exaggeration to refer to them as ever-present digital health coaches, as increasingly it is encouraged to wear them at all times in order to get the most out of your data. Garmin wearables are a good example of this, with a focus on being active, they cover a vast variety of sports and provide a substantial amount of data on their Garmin connect application where users can analyze and observe their daily activities. These are increasingly accompanied by implementation of gamification.
Gamification refers to utilisation of game design elements for nongame-related applications. These elements are used to motivate and drive users to reach their goals. On wearable platforms, data gathered from daily activities can serve as competition between different users on the platform. Say, that your average weekly steps are around 50,000 steps. Here, based on specific algorithms, the platform places you on a leaderboard against individuals whose average weekly steps are similar to yours or higher, with the highest ranking member exceeding your current average weekly steps.
As a result of this gamified scenario, the user can push themselves to increase their daily activities in order to do better on the leaderboard and potentially lead a healthier life. While the gamification aspect of wearables and their application could bring benefits, evidence of efficacy is scarce and varies widely with some claiming that the practice might bring more harm than good.
Remote monitoring and picking up on early signs of disease could be immensely beneficial for those who suffer from chronic conditions and the elderly. Here, by wearing a smart device or manual data entry for a prolonged period, individuals will be able to communicate to their healthcare workers without the need of disrupting their daily lives. This is a great example of algorithms collaborating with healthcare professionals to produce an outcome that is beneficial for patients.
