Health Wearables: Products – Jan/Feb 2018

Jan. 25, 2018

How Reemo Health is reinventing wearable technology for seniors

How can seniors remain independent for as long as possible, and also stay healthy and safe? Given the aging population, it’s an increasingly important question. But it’s not a new one, nor is wearable technology for seniors a new solution. Anyone around in the early ’90s knows the famous tagline, “Help, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.”

Emergency alert pendants and fall detectors for seniors were among the earliest use cases for health wearables. But as consumer technology has become smarter and more sophisticated, so has wearable technology for seniors.

Reemo Health‘s remote monitoring platform—which runs on a Samsung Gear smartwatch—monitors movement, heart rate, location, and enables push-button 911 calls. It also tracks the wearer’s quality of movement, sleep patterns and other relevant health data. This way, seniors and their families and care providers can stay connected and spot negative health trends before there’s an emergency.

Benefits of wearable technology

1. Care providers spot negative health trends and intervene early.
Care providers see daily health data, a 30-day baseline for the individual, and a three-day trend from that baseline.

“They can see how the senior is trending,” says John Valiton, CEO of Reemo Health. “Do their activity levels match their care plans? What are their heart rates over time? If there are negative trends, do they need medical attention now, before there’s an emergency room trip?”

The technology also helps senior care facilities quickly identify which patients need the most attention each day. With the data collected from the Reemo solution and Gear smartwatch, healthcare providers can also pinpoint specific behavioral or health patterns throughout a patient’s care cycle.

2. Adult children get actionable insights.
Because authorized adult children can also view the senior’s data on the Reemo portal, they have more informed conversations with their parents.

“Instead of the usual phone call—‘Hi Mom, how are you?’ ‘I’m fine.’—they can say, ‘Hey Mom, are you staying active enough this week? Just want to make sure you’re feeling okay.’ Now they’re having an informed dialogue that gets to important issues.”

By being able to ask questions about potentially concerning health data, adult children can start creating a dialogue around preventative care, instead of constantly digging for information.

3. Seniors actually want to wear it.
Fall pendants carry a stigma for many seniors, particularly the younger ones, but even their grandkids think smartwatches are cool. The smartwatch also helps seniors with tasks beyond medical emergencies, making it feel less like a medical device, helping increase
acceptance. Samsung

Physicians and staff wear Instadose + by Mirion Technologies to track daily and cumulative radiation exposure. Instadose + dosimeters can help increase dosimetry compliance and lower dose for high-risk employees.

Transforming radiation monitoring

The Instadose + by Mirion Technologies transforms radiation monitoring programs to increase dosimetry compliance and lower dose for high-risk employees.

The Instadose + dosimeter helps Radiation Safety Officers (RSO) save time managing dosimetry programs with the following:

  • Eliminating the badge collection process;
  • increasing compliance;
  • tracking and controlling dose for high-risk employees; and
  • alerting with e-mails sent when a dose exceeds a user-specified level.

The Instadose + dosimetry system simplifies the administration of radiation monitoring programs by allowing Radiation Safety Officers to manage the radiation monitoring programs with automatic dose reads captured by iPhones, iPads, or PCs; to high-dose notification alerts and online badge reassignments.

Instadose + dosimeters use Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) Technology to transmit dose data that can be seen on smart devices and PCs. The data is automatically transmitted to these devices and can also be retrieved on-demand manually, when needed. On-demand reports are also available and eliminate the need to ship badges to create and access reports.

Mirion Technologies is committed to putting an array of tools in the hands of healthcare professionals, with options including badge dosimetry services, handheld survey meters, and installed area monitors. Mirion Technologies

Courtesy of Vocera

Communication is key while keeping hands free

Delivering a secure, integrated, and intelligent communication solution for customers, the Vocera B3000n Communication Badge builds upon the B3000 Communication Badge and is a component of the Vocera Communication System, created to deliver a secure, integrated, and intelligent communication. The Vocera Badge has been designed from the ground up to meet the requirements of highly mobile workers who need to stay connected while keeping their hands free to perform their regular job duties. Utilizing an enterprise class Wi-Fi network, the Vocera Badge delivers real-time voice communication between customers whenever needed.

The wearable Vocera Badge weighs less than two ounces, allowing users to keep their hands free without the burden of carrying a smartphone. With a durable design, the Vocera Badge is built to withstand the rigors of challenging environments. Acoustic tuning through the use of four microphones and advanced noise reduction technology improves the audio experience to users while providing greater accuracy for voice recognition.

Features include the following:

  • The dual-band radio permits the B3000n to utilize both the 2.4GHz and the 5GHz Wi-Fi spectrum. 5GHz is less susceptible to noise and interference from other radio devices, leading to higher voice quality and better voice recognition.
  • The B3000n contains an illuminated Halo around the call button; this Halo provides a visual indication of the Badge call status. It glows green when on an active call, and pulses amber when on Do Not Disturb or on hold. The illuminated Halo can also be used to indicate when text messages are waiting to be read.
  • A large front-facing speaker provides audio in order to clearly hear the conversation without having to hold the Vocera Badge in the hand.
  • Four microphone design and integrated Acoustic Noise Reduction (ANR) reduce background conversations and noise interference to improve speech recognition in noisy environments.

Multi-user operation (shared device) permits a Vocera Badge to be passed to another user at the end of a shift, allowing the new user to log into the Vocera system from the Vocera Badge and immediately begin using it. Vocera

Courtesy of Nokia

It’s never been easier to follow your heart

Nokia BPM+ provides quick-and-easy blood pressure monitoring at home or on the go, so you don’t have to wait for a doctor’s appointment to monitor your health.

This compact monitor is easy to stow in a purse, pocket, or suitcase. The soft cuff folds around the monitor, while an adjustable loop system allows the monitor to accommodate a variety of arm circumferences.

BPM+ provides highly accurate blood pressure and heart rate measurements, empowering you to take control of your own health.

Nokia BPM+ has been specially designed to be extremely portable, compact, and travel-friendly. Featuring a slimmer, soft grey cuff, this device makes on-the-go blood pressure monitoring accessible to anyone.

To begin a measurement, simply slip on the cuff, press the button, and the Health Mate app will automatically launch. Following a brief set of instructions, you are ready to take your blood pressure.

A measurement takes 60 seconds, after which the app will display heart rate and blood pressure readings. You’ll also receive instant color-coded feedback based on internationally-recognized recommendations for hypertension, to help you understand the reading.

Because tracking over time helps you better understand heart health, all blood pressure readings automatically sync with the Health Mate app, which will create an easy-to-understand chart of all your measurements.

You can view your blood pressure history in the app at any time, and easily spot trends and changes. Tracking can help you prevent health issues or check the efficacy of any lifestyle changes or treatment.

You can also easily share measurements with your care provider in just a few taps on your smartphone or tablet.

For even more advanced blood pressure tracking, consider Hy-Result, an optional upgrade available through the app that helps you follow a medical protocol in the comfort of your home. Nokia

Sponsored Recommendations

Elevating Clinical Performance and Financial Outcomes with Virtual Care Management

Transform healthcare delivery with Virtual Care Management (VCM) solutions, enabling proactive, continuous patient engagement to close care gaps, improve outcomes, and boost operational...

Examining AI Adoption + ROI in Healthcare Payments

Maximize healthcare payments with AI - today + tomorrow

Addressing Revenue Leakage in Hospitals

Learn how ReadySet Surgical helps hospitals stop the loss of earned money because of billing inefficiencies, processing and coding of surgical instruments. And helps reduce surgical...

Care Access Made Easy: A Guide to Digital Self Service

Embracing digital transformation in healthcare is crucial, and there is no one-size-fits-all strategy. Consider adopting a crawl, walk, run approach to digital projects, enabling...