Thanks to the recent elections, healthcare has been a hot topic lately, and politics aside, it should continue to lead policy debates for some time to come. But apart from competing visions of what healthcare in the U.S. should look like, the issue comes down to a more fundamental level, believes Dr. Peter Mills. "How can providers interact with patients in a more effective way?" he asks. "That's the real question to be asking."
Mills has worked to combine technology with health care in a way that increases doctor-to-patient communication. Previously, he launched employee wellness software firm vielife, which was sold to Cigna in 2006, and now helms a new effort called
nGage Health.
The cloud-based online platform is geared toward creating a more robust relationship between doctors and patients, so health activities can be tracked with more accuracy. For example, a patient can input information about exercise and food intake, and a doctor could monitor that data remotely to make sure the person is on track with preventative measures.
That type of system is a radical departure from existing healthcare interactions, Mills says. Currently, most doctor visits occur because a patient is ill, leading to treatment of symptoms rather than an understanding of factors like lifestyle and behavior that can be tweaked to avoid illness.
"I felt that we have so much technology at our fingertips, and it's transformed how we do banking, communication, travel, almost everything," says Mills. "Yet, healthcare is delivered in the exact same way as it has been. Why not use that technology to change the relationship between provider and patient?"
Source: Peter Mills, nGage
Writer: Elizabeth Millard