appsparq.com
Beyond the normal fitness and basic health information (weight, blood pressure) apps, a possible next stage is to link app use to doctor advice through prescriptions. Part of the trend towards looking at what kind of regulatory regime may be needed for apps, especially those that can play a role in monitoring chronic diseases and conditions. Quote:
The idea of medically prescribed apps excites some people in the health care industry, who see them as a starting point for even more sophisticated applications that might otherwise never be built. But first, a range of issues — around vetting, paying for and monitoring the proper use of such apps — needs to be worked out.
“It is intuitive to people, the idea of a prescription,” said Lee H. Perlman, managing director of Happtique, a subsidiary of the business arm of the Greater New York Hospital Association. Happtique is creating a system to allow doctors to prescribe apps, and Mr. Perlman suggested that a change in the way people think about medicine might be required: “We’re basically saying that pills can also be information, that pills can also be connectivity.”
Coming Next – Doctors Prescribing Apps to Patients – NYTimes.com.
