Your Phone is the Future of Healthcare: Interview with a Behavioral Scientist
For decades, healthcare researchers have been anticipating a “silver tsunami”: the oncoming impact of the aging, supersized Boomer population.
Without significant change in how we deliver healthcare, our systems will be overwhelmed in the coming years. By 2030, Boomers will be making twice as many doctor’s visits, and 60% of this population will be managing at least one chronic condition.1
In fact, our healthcare systems are already starting to feel the strain, according to leading behavioral scientist and expert in health decision-making Dr. Sarah Watters. “Our typical approach to managing chronic conditions isn’t all that effective: We share lots of information with patients at a single time with hopes that people will act on this knowledge and self-manage.” But by and large, they don’t.
Behavioral science can explain why. Knowing isn’t half the battle — our behavior is context dependent. It’s driven by social and environmental factors, not just our good intentions. Health care needs to contextualize its requests for patients, with an accessible, scalable solution. And what’s with you all the time? Your phone.
Mobile technology allows healthcare providers to meet patients where they’re at, whether they’re in need of information, ongoing care, or even a word of encouragement. We sat down with Dr. Sarah Watters, a leading expert in leveraging behavioral science in digital health, to get to know more about the intersection of behavioral science and mobile health care.
Thanks for joining us, Sarah! To get started, can you walk us through how mobile health technology can bridge the gaps between health care and a real-world context?
Definitely! One of the great advantages of mobile is that this computer in your pocket is with you through all kinds of contexts: your house in the morning, on your commute, when you're in the office. It's always with you in these different environments and social settings.
For example, picture a feed on an app that surfaces the next relevant action for you to take care of your health. “Don’t forget to refill your prescription tomorrow” or “Don’t forget to pack a healthy snack today”’ Patients have that information as soon as they open the app. Ideally, the app is accompanied with just-in-time reminders that prompt patients at just the right time, in the right context.
This is something that Dr. Patel talked about in his TDL interview, how new forms of technology can personalize health care. Not only can we align things like gender, ethnicity, race, and age — technology has so much to offer contextually relevant behaviors. We have visibility into where the patient is, the time of day, their routines. We can ultimately support them in every moment, eliminating choice paralysis for them.
References
- HealthManagement. (2019). Silver Tsunami Infographic. HealthManagement, Vol. 19, No. 5. Retrieved from: https://healthmanagement.org/c/hospital/issuearticle/silver-tsunami-infographic
About the Author
Sarah Chudleigh
Sarah Chudleigh is passionate about the accessible distribution of academic research. She has had the opportunity to practice this as an organizer of TEDx conferences, editor-in-chief of her undergraduate academic journal, and lead editor at the LSE Social Policy Blog. Sarah gained a deep appreciation for interdisciplinary research during her liberal arts degree at Quest University Canada, where she specialized in political decision-making. Her current graduate research at the London School of Economics and Political Science examines the impact of national values on motivations to privately sponsor refugees, a continuation of her interest in political analysis, identity, and migration policy. On weekends, you can find Sarah gardening at her local urban farm.
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