Over the past decade or so, the use of
artificial intelligence (AI) has become integrated into our lives in many
forms, from shopping recommendations to predictive text, supporting more
automated and personalized interactions at every turn. Increased use of AI has
also helped to speed up many everyday processes by guessing future behavior
based on past data, and more recently, we have seen these advances begin to
change healthcare as well.
The use of AI in healthcare has opened a
new world of possibilities and continues to evolve in terms of its
capabilities, scope, and scale. For the digital therapeutics industry
specifically, where nearly 200 new apps are launched every day, AI plays a
significant role in driving personalization and engagement to help patients
achieve better health.
Personalization
With something as nuanced and precise as
digital health, there is no one-size-fits all solution. However, AI has
presented healthcare organizations with the opportunity to learn more about
each patient as an individual, in order to provide more personalized support,
better address a patient’s specific issues, and remove barriers throughout
their treatment journey.
For example, in conjunction with medication
management, AI can identify patterns in missed doses or delays for certain
demographics or complex medications. This can help pharma companies,
physicians, and digital platforms tailor interventions for patients most at
risk for non-adherence, increase virtual support resources, schedule check-in
calls from physicians, or apply more frequent reminders via SMS messaging.
AI-enabled digital therapeutics have helped
give new meaning to the term personalized medicine by tailoring not just the
treatment itself, but the way that treatment is managed to the individual
characteristics of each patient.
Proactivity
With adverse drug events leading to nearly
700,000 emergency room visits each year, proactivity in digital health tools
are critical. Using predictive analytics capabilities of AI, advanced digital
health platforms can intervene faster and more efficiently to prevent
unnecessary emergent care — a benefit for patients, payers, and already
overwhelmed hospitals.
The use of predictive analytics within AI
can transform aggregate patient data into a powerful modeling tool. Every piece
of data shared by a patient helps to improve the predictive powers of the AI,
to better anticipate a patient’s potential needs and challenges based on their
various characteristics — whether that is their age, gender, or number and
types of medications.
From there, digital tools can provide
different forms of motivation and support depending on the individual patient.
For example, if a patient frequently has issues with taking their medication at
the correct time, digital therapeutics tools can provide alerts and
notifications to encourage them to adhere to their medication correctly. Or, if
the underlying condition/consequences of medication mismanagement are serious
enough, enable them to automatically share their information with a caregiver
or physician as a safety net.
Patient empowerment
As more physician offices shift to
cloud-based services and make patient records more accessible via digital,
connecting patients to their own health information is easier than ever. With
AI-enabled digital therapeutics, access to personal health data is placed
directly into the hands of patients. This not only expands the healthcare
setting beyond the four walls of a medical office, but puts patients in the driver’s
seat.
Through this technology, patients easily
get support resources or interact with providers on their own terms through
telehealth connectivity. Digital therapeutics also offer health education and
insight into care plans that lead to more self-responsibility. Finally,
technology can also greatly reduce the isolation often felt when managing a
medical condition by providing a 24/7 connection.
By giving patients the ability to
participate in their care more actively through notes and updates on their
health status, it also makes it easier for care teams to support them. Patient
reported data helps clinicians better understand how their priorities,
challenges, and environment all contribute to overall health.
What the future holds for AI and digital
therapeutics
Compared to other industries, healthcare
has been slower to adopt AI technologies, and for good reason. Healthcare is
incredibly personal and requires human connection to build rapport and trust.
While digital solutions will never fully replace the vital role of human
connection in patient care, they can provide support and amplify the care
provided through traditional medical visits. Combining digital therapeutics
with human services can increase efficiencies, reduce fears, and provide a lifeline
to patients throughout their journey.
Understanding how people communicate,
receive information, and make decisions is central to creating a tailored
digital health experience. This is where AI truly shines and works in two
directions — by helping to intake information about patients and learn about
their unique needs, and then customize the way support is delivered to them
through personalized technology. AI is making digital therapeutic tools more
than a helpful solution, but an essential component in patient care.
Through a deeper understanding of patient
actions and greater refinement of its processes, AI-powered digital
therapeutics can help us deploy specific support strategies for each patient to
navigate toward healthier outcomes. In the very near term, we are likely to see
AI working to employ personalized health strategies that are informed by
population data, rooted in a holistic approach that meets patients where they
are, and moves them toward better health. The future of even better, more personalized
health support is likely just around the corner.
