Archive for the ‘Healthcare’ Category
Sunday, September 29th, 2019
It’s World Heart Day today, and Philips is highlighting the importance of early detection of heart disease with its heart health quiz to increase individual awareness of risk factors and early symptoms to encourage early detection and preventive care.
* This story first appeared on Haleness Me.
I like how the quiz provided immediate tips based on each of the 14 questions, based on its relevance to heart health. At the end of the quiz, you get an overall assessment of the state of your heart health.
Heart disease is a leading cause of death globally. Unfortunately it is also a clinically silent disease.
Take this
one-minute quiz here to learn more about the early detection of heart disease – early symptoms, risk factors and lifestyle habits – and share with your loved ones this World Heart Day.
Findings from Philips’ Annual Future Health Index 2019 unveiled how healthcare practitioners are recommending the use of digital health technology to track health data, just as patients are seeking greater access to data for better empowerment of their health.
More details below on the findings of the Future Health Index 2019.
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Tags:healthtech, heart, MedTech, Philips, surveys
Posted in Healthcare, Philips, Study | No Comments »
Saturday, September 28th, 2019
How can technology help in the fight against zoonisis? Aspiring vet, Erin Tan, did some research on the topic and shares what she thinks in this second article in a two-part series.
* This article first appeared in HalenessMe.
The web-based app Supramap uses genomic data to track the global movement of avian influenza virus.
Emerging technology can help in mainly two ways.
Firstly, through harnessing the power of Big Data, information from previous outbreaks, and studies conducted independently around the world, can be collated to help predict where a deadly zoonotic virus will strike next.
About The Author
Erin Tan is an aspiring Veterinarian.
She will be reading Veterinary Medicine at Emmanuel College in the University of Cambridge.
The vast availability of health data today means that data must be intelligently handled, using the right tools to derive helpful trends.
For instance, Google Flu Trends collated data from users’ searches to estimate influenza activity, and was found to show strong correlation with official data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the 2009 flu pandemic.
The web-based app Supramap uses genomic data to track the global movement of avian influenza virus.
Google Flu Trends collated data from users’ searches to estimate influenza activity.
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Tags:analytics, Big Data, healthtech, medicine, MedTech, Tech Focus, technology, veterinary medicine
Posted in Big Data, Brief, Healthcare, Opinion, Tech Focus, Technology | No Comments »
Saturday, September 21st, 2019
The word ‘zoonosis’ is not one that is popular in the common lexicon, and yet it is something that can affect our lives profoundly. Aspiring vet med student, Erin Tan, did some research on the topic and shares what she thinks in this two-part story.
* This article first appeared in HalenessMe.
Zoonoses. Source: GAO.
A zoonosis is a disease which can be transferred from animals to humans, and there are many examples of zoonoses which many are familiar with.
About the Author
Erin Tan is an aspiring Veterinary Medicine student.
She has been offered a place to study Vet Med at the University of Cambridge, the Royal Veterinary College in London, and the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies at the University of Edinburgh.
She is still deciding which of these places to take up.
One has only to recall the SARS outbreak of 2003 to recognise the destructive potential of zoonoses.
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), a disease which originated from viruses in bats that jumped to palm civets and then to humans, severely impacted countries like Hong Kong, China, Singapore, and even Canada.
774 lives were claimed globally by this never-before-seen disease.
Stories of doctors, nurses and other health workers who had perished saving the lives of SARS patients filled the papers.
International travel to affected areas dropped sharply by 50-70%, resulting in the closure of many tourism-related businesses.
The civet cat is closely associated with the outbreak of SARS in Asia.
Clearly, while the containment of SARS – especially in Singapore – is generally hailed as a success story, the outbreak did result in significant social and economic drawbacks.
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Tags:healthtech, medicine, MedTech, Tech Focus, technology, veterinary medicine
Posted in Brief, Healthcare, infographics, Opinion, Tech Focus | No Comments »
Friday, September 20th, 2019
The new LG Puricare Air Purifier (S$1,099) offers fresh indoor air and protects against the harmful effects of haze. Available now in Best Denki, Courts and Harvey Norman.
The new LG PuriCare Air Purifier (AS60GDWV0) features 360-degree purification capability and a 6-step filtration system.
The new LG PuriCare Air Purifier (AS60GDWV0) removes invisible air pollutants of up to PM 1.0, enabling homeowners to enjoy fresh indoor air.
With connectivity options through Google Assistant, users can connect the air purifier to the LG SmartThinQ® app, using voice commands to check on the indoor air quality and change the air purification mode at home.
The air purifier offers the following features.
- 360-degree purification: absorbing pollutants wherever it is placed.
- A wider reach with Clean Booster.
- Six-step filtration system that removes six types of pollutants.
- Smart Indicator for keeping track of air quality.
More details below from the press release.
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Tags:Air Purifier, appliances, haze, LG, PuriCare, Singapore
Posted in Air Purifiers, Announce, Appliances, Gadgets, gadgets, Healthcare, Launch, LG, newArrivals, Press Release, Prices, Specifications | No Comments »
Thursday, August 29th, 2019
Fitbit has launched the Versa 2 smartwatch and Aria Air Bluetooth scale in Singapore. Price and availability below.
Fitbit Versa 2 smartwatches.
The two new devices join the existing Fitbit Versa and Fitbit Aria.
“At Fitbit, we believe that health belongs to everyone and that people should not be priced out of having access to devices and features that can help them improve their health. That’s why we’ve designed Versa 2 to be a premium, full-featured and easy-to-use smartwatch at an accessible price point. Building on the success of our original best-selling Versa smartwatch, we believe the added value and innovation in Versa 2 with new features like Alexa, a Spotify app and advanced in-app and on-device sleep features, will bring more users into the smartwatch category, allowing them to unlock the benefits of better health,” said James Park, co-founder and CEO of Fitbit.
The new Fitbit Versa 2 is swimproof and includes sleep features like Sleep Score and smart wake, together with advanced health, fitness and smart feature.
The Versa 2 debuts an on-device microphone, which enables Fitbit’s first Alexa smartwatch experience, along with a Spotify app that allows users to control their music and podcasts, and Fitbit Pay on all models.
Coupled with even faster performance, thousands of apps and clock faces and a brighter, crisper display with an optional always-on mode, the Versa 2 wants to be your 24/7 health and wellness companion.
With 5+ days battery life, the Versa 2 has the same price tag as the Versa when the latter was launched last April.
The latest Fitbit Aria Air is an affordable Bluetooth scale that tracks weight and syncs with the Fitbit app to calculate BMI, providing a comprehensive view of your trends over time alongside your activity, heart rate, sleep and nutrition data within the Fitbit app.
Fitbit Aria Air smart Bluetooth scale.
When combined with Fitbit’s app and wearable devices, Aria Air provides access to added data, information and motivation to more effectively reach health and wellness goals.
Price and availability below.
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Tags:appliances, Aria, Fitbit, fitness, health, launch, prices, Singapore, sleep, smartwatches, Versa, wearables
Posted in Accessories, Announce, Appliances, Availability, Fitbit, Gadgets, gadgets, Healthcare, Internet of Things, newArrivals, Press Release, Prices, smartwatches, Watches | No Comments »
Saturday, August 24th, 2019
Both Fitbit and HPB have clarified that media reports that the Singapore government is planning to give away one million free Fitbit devices are not correct.
* This story first appeared in Haleness Me.
The “free” Inspire Fitbit HR tracker for the 1 million Fitbit Premium service subscribers that Fitbit is targeting.
Both clarifications are very similarly worded and are appended below.
Essentially, the clarifications addresses two issues: who is actually giving out the free Inspire HR trackers, and whether other partners have been selected by HPB for other collaborations.
Below is Fitbit’s clarification.
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Tags:clarifications, correction, Fitbit, fitness, health, HPB, public health, Singapore, wishbe
Posted in Accessories, Announce, Big Data, Fitbit, fitness watches, Gadgets, gadgets, Healthcare, Internet of Things, IoT, News, Press Release, Singapore | No Comments »
Friday, August 23rd, 2019
Named “Live Healthy SG”, the population-based public health initiative with the Singapore Government is Fitbit’s first major integration of its digital health platform and wearables into a national public health program.
* This story first appeared in Haleness Me.
The landmark nationwide health initiative will be powered by Fitbit devices and its new Premium service designed to drive better health outcomes at scale.
Fitbit is collaborating with Singapore’s Health Promotion Board (HPB) on the healthy population project in support of Singapore’s Smart Nation initiative.
The HPB is Singapore’s government agency that implements policy and programs to improve the nation’s health.
Fitbit was identified through a competitive call for collaboration and various levels of competitive evaluation.
Participants who enroll in and commit to one year of Fitbit Premium service will receive a Fitbit Inspire HR at no cost.
“Live Healthy SG” was designed for Singapore by Fitbit to harness technology, behavior insights and analytics to help Singaporeans get healthier through meaningful and sustained behavior change.
Live Healthy SG will engage people of all ages and levels of health using Fitbit devices and its new Premium service, which is launching to consumers in select markets around the world this fall.
More details below from the press release.
(more…)
Tags:Fitbit, fitness, health, HPB, public health, Singapore
Posted in Accessories, Announce, Big Data, Fitbit, fitness watches, Gadgets, Healthcare, Internet of Things, News, Press Release, Singapore, Sports | No Comments »
Saturday, August 10th, 2019
Gojek and Doctor Anywhere offered some 2,000 drivers a fully-subsidised prediabetes risk test as part of National Day celebrations.
* This story first appeared on Haleness Me.
The prediabetes tests jointly offered by Gojek & Doctor Anywhere is part of Gojek’s National Day celebrations which also included partnership with Sport Singapore to promote health and fitness among driver-partners.
Gojek offered some 2,000 driver-partners access to a fully-subsidised prediabetes risk test, under its driver benefits programme, GoalBetter.
“These wellness initiatives are testament to Gojek and Doctor Anywhere’s joint commitment to boost driver-partners’ health and wellness, and improve their quality of life. To show our continued support, we brought our staff down to the ‘Get Active with Gojek!’ event to promote healthy living amongst driver-partners’ and celebrate their achievements, and we look forward to more meaningful health engagement initiatives like this in the near future!” said Lim Wai Mun, Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Doctor Anywhere.
The tests are part of a trial that started on August 8.
They will be funded by Gojek, and represent a joint effort between Gojek and Doctor Anywhere to help driver partners detect health conditions early and take charge of their health, and to support the Singapore government’s ongoing war on diabetes.
Driver-partners must have qualified for GoalBetter to be eligible for the trial.
To take the test, drivers can sign up with Gojek and visit any of Doctor Anywhere’s eight clinics islandwide.
Following the trial, Gojek will explore expanding the initiative to the rest of its driver-partners.
Gojek’s GoalBetter driver benefits programme was launched in April, 2019.
Nearly 150 driver-partners have been using telehealth services on Doctor Anywhere, on the back of Gojek’s partnership with Doctor Anywhere, a healthcare app that offers a holistic range of health and wellness services on a single, integrated platform.
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Tags:Doctor Anywhere, GoalBetter, GoJek, telehealth, telemedicine
Posted in Gojek, Healthcare, News, Press Release | No Comments »
Tuesday, August 6th, 2019
Singapore-based DocDoc which positions itself as “the world’s first patient intelligence company”, has today announced the close of an institutional capital raise of US$13 million, bringing the total funding the company has raised to date to US$24.6 million.
* This story first appeared in Haleness Me.
“We are excited to be moving from strength to strength with solid support from our investors and an ecosystem of exceptional partners. We believe in the potential of our patient intelligence platform to revolutionize and redefine the delivery of healthcare,” said Cole Sirucek, DocDoc Co-founder and CEO.
The financing was done on a convertible note and was led by Adamas Finance Asia Limited (ADAM), a London-listed investment company, alongside leading regional family offices, a fund managed by a global investment firm specialising in financial services and the Cyberport Macro Fund.
“Of course, we enable our partners to save money, boost engagement and delight their customers in measurable ways, but what is far more important is that we meaningfully help people. Real people with real problems. People who are uncertain or scared, people who know a lot or almost nothing about healthcare, and people who need a friend to help navigate an amazingly complex healthcare ecosystem. At DocDoc, we have created the solution we needed when we faced this situation. Our product is real as it comes from the purest of intention, the need for parents to protect their child. Our product is real as it is built by an uncompromising team who owns the importance of our mission,” commented Cole Sirucek, DocDoc Co-founder and CEO.
DocDoc’s AI-powered doctor discovery platform is reimagining the patient journey by building a patient-centric healthcare ecosystem that supports patients throughout the continuum of care and empowering them with readily digestible medical information to make well-informed healthcare decisions.
The proceeds raised will be used to support DocDoc’s market expansion and enhance its leading patient intelligence platform.
Founded in 2012, DocDoc is one of the earliest telemedicine platforms in Singapore.
Its current suite of product offerings includes doctor discovery, telemedicine, and cashless settlement.
Operating in eight countries, DocDoc boasts that it has built the largest network of doctors in Asia with over 23,000 doctors and 793 clinics and hospitals in its network.
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Tags:Adamas, Cyberport, DocDoc, doctors, funding, healthcare, insurance, medical, MedTech, partnerships, telehealth, telemedicine
Posted in Announce, Apps, Healthcare, Medical, News, Press Release, Software, software | No Comments »
Monday, August 5th, 2019
Prudential and MyDoc are launching online doctor consultations and telemedicine services to Asian consumers.
* This story first appeared in Haleness Me.
Singapore-based MyDoc, founded in 2012, is one of the earliest telemedicine providers in Singapore.
Prudential Corporation Asia (“Prudential”) today announced it will partner with telemedicine provider MyDoc to offer consumers access to value-added health services on their mobile phones, including doctor consultations, electronic prescriptions and electronic medical certificates.
“Prudential’s partnership with MyDoc is in line with our commitment to make healthcare affordable and accessible to all. MyDoc’s telemedicine services will be part of the full cycle of healthcare and wellness services on Pulse, from wellness tracking and symptom checking to online consultations and disease prevention. By combining revolutionary health technology and the convenience of telemedicine, MyDoc and Prudential are helping to empower consumers to take control of their health, anytime, anywhere. Prudential will continue to bring the best health and wellness services to Pulse, in tandem with our local and regional partners,” said Nic Nicandrou, Chief Executive of Prudential Corporation Asia.
Prudential is a leading life insurer and asset manager in Asia with over 15 million customers and £151 billion in assets under management.
Singapore-based MyDoc, founded in 2012, is one of the earliest telemedicine providers in Singapore.
MyDoc’s services will be integrated into Pulse by Prudential, the first app of its kind in the region offering holistic health management to users.
Pulse features self-help health and wellness tools, a symptom checker powered by Artificial Intelligence, and other value-added services.
The Pulse app will launch in 11 markets across Asia, and can be downloaded for free.
MyDoc offers patients a video consultation with a doctor through Pulse, as well as the option to book a face-to-face appointment.
Electronic prescriptions, medicine delivery, electronic medical certificates and online records will be offered in selected markets as an additional service.
(more…)
Tags:doctors, healthcare, insurance, medical, MedTech, MyDoc, partnerships, Prudential, telehealth, telemedicine
Posted in Announce, App, Healthcare, Medical, News, Press Release, Software, software | No Comments »
