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Ask HN: Why isn't there an awesome mobile personal health experience?
I want to be able to see easy to understand analytics combining my lab results, checkup information, sleep & exercise data, and genetic information into actionable, preventative and predictive results. If someone works to connect all the EHR systems, this seems like a purely UX + Data/ML issue. What do you think?
- linesweep 8y agoI agree that an all-in-one platform for this is sorely needed! It would be great to keep track of health without hopping from system to system AND use data from genetics, for example, to complement data from a physical to support a diagnosis. The first possible issue I think of is privacy and HIPAA.
- hsikka 8y agoI feel the same way! Quick q: Is this the sort of thing you would pay for, ex $5 a month? Or would you expect it for free?
- linesweep 8y agoA platform that integrates labs, records, patient-provided data, etc. would definitely be worth over $5 a month. A platform that is smart enough to interpret the data and offer lifestyle adjustments (treatments/drugs could be trickier) might approach the role of a health coach or doctor. I'm imagining EMRs with a Fitbit interface on steroids. I don't believe it would or should replace doctors, but such a system that gives the patient so much information would change the patient-provider relationship. TLDR; yes, I would pay a $5 subscription for something so powerful. :)
- sidlls 8y agoBasically every application is "purely a UX + data" issue. ML is only sometimes a good solution. In this context, the "UX + data" issue is terribly hard. The reason why you don't have an all-in-one solution is because it's incredibly challenging and expensive. Where do you start? If you try to aggregate by provider you're looking at everything from modern applications for EHR to paper record keeping. If you try at the insurer level you're looking at entrenched players who have a profit motivated interest to explicitly not have such a product, long lags between service date and the data being available, and terrible data quality. Self reporting? Good luck with quality or consistency. This doesn't even begin to cover the regulatory issues and monetization.
- hsikka 8y agoWell said. What if you go to the consumer first, and build a beautiful, gamified experience that deals with non regulated data: i.e. fitness, sleep, and genetics. I imagine if you get to a critical enough mass of consumers, you could gain leverage over the incumbents and incentivize providers to help you integrate?
- hsikka 8y agoObviously these aren't easy things to do, but I'm trying to scope the broader problem down in order to make it actionable
- linesweep 8y agoThe experience you propose sounds like Fitbit + 23andMe, which sounds great, personally. Unfortunately, I don't think providers would want to dig their own grave. sidlls is also right - regulatory issues would be a huge headache.