Dubai, United Arab Emirates; April 13, 2021: Massimo Cannizzo, GELLIFY Middle East CEO and Co-founder, highlighted the value of integration and data science to help correlate and customise devices to individuals, at an online panel discussion about the impact of technology to the healthcare industry held in March 2021.
“Healthcare devices’ manufacturers and users needs and preferences vary; and there are available and upcoming technologies that continue to address them. However, correlating all the information that we get from these devices is often missed. For example, your pathologist may not necessarily have access to the data of your wearable fitness tracker.”
He continues, “While statistics are important in science and technology, individuals cannot fall into a category based on it alone, our personal data is vital. We have to look at building an overall avatar of data for our physicians to refer to.”
With a more widely available and accessible technologies that allow us to monitor our wellbeing and make more informed decisions, the healthcare industry has changed dramatically over the years and was even accelerated by the pandemic.
According to a report by consumer electronics company known for their fitness trackers FitBit, after surveying over 1,000 people across the UAE during the month of August 2020, 18% of UAE participants were paying some attention to their personal health prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, but more than half of respondents in the UAE (55%) stated that they are prioritising their personal health now more than ever.Another report states a surge in fitness apps downloads, nearly 50% worldwide during the first half of 2020 and daily active users in the MENA region increased by 28% .
What this means to businesses
“As well all know, COVID-19 was an accelerator of transformation, especially adoption. Managing health remotely was a boost. We also realised the importance of creating stronger awareness on monitoring our health. What we do with all these data is what businesses need to pay attention to: there is a need to improve accessibility, track data from the actual tracking devices, and to have a convergence among all players in the healthcare ecosystem,” Massimo concluded.
