Intelligent Health and Personalized Medicine Wireless Medical Devices Galen Institute March 25, 2010 Don Casey, CEO, West Wireless Health Institute
West Wireless Health Institute An independent nonprofit medical research organization founded a year ago by Gary and Mary West. Mission: to improve health care costs, while delivering superior outcomes by accelerating the availability of medical technology. Focus areas for accelerating wireless medical devices: Innovate and incubatepromising wireless technology Validate the value of wireless technology Educate the next generation of health care providers on wireless technology Advocate enlightened policy that will accelerate the availability of wireless health Invest in promising technology
Role of medical devices in: Genomics transforming the understanding of basic biology in a way that will yield Companion biomarker development Highly targeted clinical testing and validation More rapid drug approval and reduction in adverse events or lack of therapeutic affect Data driven health care EMRs and linked databases Population based analysis Early indicationsof of adverse events ortherapeutic inadequacy Wireless medicaldevices devices the lastmile
Wireless Personal Medical Devices Wireless Health Revolution Transformation in diagnosis i and monitoring: i Low cost sensors Ubiquitous telecommunications and the Internet Sophisticated i algorithms Patient outreach Differ significantly from past uses of implantable medical devices closed systems Allow for remote diagnosis/monitoring high risk patients with continuous data streams personalized medical decisions new paradigm around understanding di disease algorithms become important
Benefits of Wireless Health Infrastructure independent personal health the right therapy the right time wherever the patient is at a low cost
Sustainable, Cost Effective Solutions Wireless Health: Aided by wireless sensors, devices and information y services, the health care system is ever present and always on. Rather than waiting for sick patients to present to a hospital or doctor s office, clinical decisions are more automated, made away from the traditional health care infrastructure whenever possible, and engage patients while they still feel well.
Involves series of costly, delayed reactions to acute exacerbations of disease Case Study: Management of CHF Today Worsening shortness of breath at nighttime over several weeks leads to a visit to primary care doctor and adjustment to medication regimen Unable to keep doctor s appointment due to inability to take time off from work, leading to an urgent call weeks later to request refills of prescriptions Contracts a viral upper respiratory tract infection leading to a CHF exacerbation requiring hospitalization Quality of Life Initial cardiac event and diagnosis of congestive heart failure Time Salt load from Thanksgiving dinner leads to admission to hospital Missed several doses of diuretic, requiring visit to emergency department for intravenous diuretic overnight Symptoms worsen, requiring ICU stay and eventually resulting in death
Improved quality of life with fewer costly episodes of acute care Case Study: Treating CHF via Wireless Health Patient s Corventis Piix monitor detects signs consistent with worsening heart failure. A software algorithm determines that a simple adjustment to the medication regimen should suffice. Unable to go to the doctor s office, he schedules a remote visit via webcam to review data from the Piix monitor, as well as dailyweights from the bathroom scale, oxygen saturation levels from a pulse oximeter, and sleep disturbances from his nightly EEG. Sensors at the workplace and around the neighborhood have detected an increasing number of flu cases. The employer agrees that, as a highly susceptible individual, the patient should work from home. Qua ality of Life Hospital discharge instructions, including a cardiac rehabilitation schedule, are transmitted to the patient s phone. He joins an online community of other newly diagnosed CHF patients. Time While buying ingredients for Thanksgiving dinner, the patient scans UPC labels with his phone to ensure the items fall within his dietary guidelines. His health plan and employer both offer immediate discounts on foods low in salt. Both the pill bottle and individual pills are able to track adherence to therapy, sending alerts to the patient, his family, and his provider that he has already missed two doses of his diuretic.
What will it take Clinical validation of the outcome and costs of wireless technology solutions Enlightened policy centered on: Reimbursement Regulatory pathways Legal clarity around privacy, liability and state issues Investment