Meridian Health, T-Mobile, and iMPak Health jointly announced the launch this week of iMPak's SleepTrack sleep monitor.
The system has three components: a SleepTrak card (which is a credit card-sized wireless device that is worn on the upper arm), a free app offered through Nokia's Ovi store, and T-Mobile’s Astound smartphone, which is the only phone compatible with the SleepTrak device.
iMPak is a joint venture between Meridian Health and wireless technology firm Cypak that launched last year. iMPak aims to launch a number of reliable, low cost, easy to use solutions based on Near Field Communications (NFC), embedded sensors, and storage capabilities, for various health conditions. The SleepTrak was first announced in April. iMPak's first offering was an NFC-enabled pain journal called Health Journal for Pain. iMPak also has similar NFC card-powered offerings for cholesterol management, chronic heart failure, diabetes management and weight management.
“T-Mobile sees NFC as one of the ways we can deliver value to our customers and help businesses evolve,” stated Matt Millen, Vice President of Small and Medium Business Sales at T-Mobile USA, in a press release. “Our NFC-capable smartphones on T-Mobile’s reliable nationwide 4G network are helping iMPak Health and Meridian Health to bring complex capabilities, like a professional sleep assessment session, to the consumer market for a fraction of the price. The opportunities for NFC technology appear limitless.”
“With this deployment, we successfully combined the expertise of a health care organization, a telemedicine technology company, and a wireless operator to deliver cost-effective, easy-to-use tools that allow users to take control of their own health and act on the information provided,” stated Sandra Elliott, Director, Consumer Technology and Service Development, Meridian Health in a press release.
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Read the press release below.
PRESS RELEASE -- Meridian Health, a leading not-for-profit health care organization, and iMPak Health, a joint venture of Swedish-based chip developer Cypak A.B., today announced the successful deployment of their SleepTrak sleep monitoring offerings on T-Mobile’s nationwide 4G network. Utilizing T-Mobile’s Nokia Astound™ devices in combination with the SleepTrak card, a credit card-sized wireless device that is worn on the upper arm, and the free downloadable SleepTrak application, users collect and transfer valuable data about sleep patterns and symptoms associated with inefficient sleep via near field communication (NFC).
“With this deployment, we successfully combined the expertise of a health care organization, a telemedicine technology company, and a wireless operator to deliver cost-effective, easy-to-use tools that allow users to take control of their own health and act on the information provided,” said Sandra Elliott, Director, Consumer Technology and Service Development, Meridian Health.
NFC, a two-way communication technology based on radio frequency identification (RFID), allows for simplified data exchange and wireless connection between devices over a short distance. Today, NFC has primarily fueled mobile phone payment technology. However, the technology is seeing increasing use in the emerging mobile healthcare field as it offers healthcare professionals an ability to collect clinical data while connecting with patients seamlessly no matter their location. NFC also allows individuals new ways to keep track of their own health through innovative solutions like the SleepTrak offerings.
“In today’s digital age, the lack of quality sleep is one of the main health concerns of both men and women,” said Carol Ash, M.D., board certified sleep expert at Meridian Health. “Linking the SleepTrak offerings to a NFC-capable device on T-Mobile’s network will increase the user’s access and visibility to critical health-related information in a convenient and unobtrusive way.”
“T-Mobile sees NFC as one of the ways we can deliver value to our customers and help businesses evolve,” said Matt Millen, Vice President of Small and Medium Business Sales at T-Mobile USA. “Our NFC-capable smartphones on T-Mobile’s reliable nationwide 4G network are helping iMPak Health and Meridian Health to bring complex capabilities, like a professional sleep assessment session, to the consumer market for a fraction of the price. The opportunities for NFC technology appear limitless.”
The T-Mobile Nokia Astound is available at T-Mobile retail locations. Visit Nokia’s Ovi Store to download the free SleepTrak application. The SleepTrak card is available for purchase on Amazon.com for less than $30.
About iMPak Health
A joint venture of Swedish-based chip developer and innovator Cypak and Meridian Health, a not for profit leader, iMPak Health brings together the latest in wireless technology and the front-line know-how of today's health care environment to provide consumers and patients with effective and intuitive tools to better manage their health. iMPak Health’s mission is to become a leader in developing, easy-to-use devices to screen, diagnose, and monitor health conditions.
About Meridian Health
Meridian Health is a leading not-for-profit health care organization in New Jersey, comprising Jersey Shore University Medical Center and K. Hovnanian Children's Hospital in Neptune, Ocean Medical Center in Brick, Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, Southern Ocean Medical Center in Manahawkin, Bayshore Community Hospital in Holmdel, and Meridian Partner Companies that include home health services, skilled nursing and rehabilitation centers, ambulatory care, ambulance services, and outpatient centers. Meridian Health has consistently been rated among the top performing health systems in New Jersey for clinical quality, is one of the FORTUNE "100 Best Companies to Work For", and is the recipient of numerous state and national recognitions for patient care and nursing excellence, including the distinction of being the first health system in the country to receive Magnet designation for nursing.
About T-Mobile USA
Based in Bellevue, Wash., T-Mobile USA, Inc. is the U.S. wireless operation of Deutsche Telekom AG (OTCQX: DTEGY). By the end of the second quarter of 2011, approximately 128 million mobile customers were served by the mobile communication segments of the Deutsche Telekom group — 33.6 million by T-Mobile USA — all via a common technology platform based on GSM and UMTS and additionally HSPA+ 21/HSPA+ 42. T-Mobile USA’s innovative wireless products and services help empower people to connect to those who matter most. Multiple independent research studies continue to rank T-Mobile USA among the highest in numerous regions throughout the U.S. in wireless customer care and call quality. For more information, please visit http://www.T-Mobile.com. T-Mobile is a federally registered trademark of Deutsche Telekom AG. For further information on Deutsche Telekom, please visit www.telekom.de/investor-relations.
