Philips diabetes self-care app with integrated virtual community

Philips has unveiled a mobile diabetes monitoring system, developed in partnership with Netherlands-based Radboud University Medical Center and Salesforce, for people with type 1 diabetes. The platform was built using Philips' cloud-based HealthSuite offering and the Salesforce App Cloud.

“There is a growing need for solutions that enhance self-management and continuity of care for those with chronic conditions such as diabetes to reduce health deterioration, re-admissions and mortality rates," Jeroen Tas, CEO Healthcare Informatics Solutions and Services at Philips, said in a statement. "This system has been designed by patients for patients and is enabling fully integrated health management and care delivery in a new, connected, efficient and highly patient-centric way.”

The diabetes tracking system offers users a patient-facing app and online community that consists of patients and healthcare professionals enrolled in the program. The app, which Philips refers to as a prototype, integrates data from electronic health records, digital health devices, like connected glucose meters and activity tracking devices, and self-reported data from the patient. Patients will then be able to use the app on smartphones or tablets to track their health metrics, including their blood glucose levels, insulin use, and eating habits. The app will also provide the user with health coaching. 

Patients can use the online community to send private messages to healthcare providers and share posts about their health as well as past experiences with other patients, clinicians, and caregivers.

The offering will be ready for pilots by the end of the year, though Philips said it was just making the product available in the Netherlands and will consider expanding development research to other countries in the coming months, including the United States.

Just last week, Philips launched a new suite of personal connected health devices. The announcement included not just the devices, but “health programs” encompassing the device, an app-based personalized program, and secure data analysis in the cloud.

Salesforce also recently made digital health-related news. Earlier this month, Salesforce launched its first product designed specifically for the healthcare sector: Salesforce Health Cloud. The new offering will be a patient engagement and patient management offering designed to work alongside the EHR and other data sources.