Hospitals, Patient Engagement, Startups

From “digital snake oil” seller to partner? AMA strikes 1st digital health partnership

AMA's president had called unproven digital health apps 21st Century's version of snake oil, and now the doctors' group is formally partnering with a digital health company for the very first time.

collaboration

Last month, James Madara, chief executive officer of the American Medical Association, turned quite a few heads when he characterized digital health as the “digital snake oil of the early 21st century.”

To be fair, Madara was specifically targeting unproven digital health apps, and ineffective electronic medical records, among other things, but it played to the notion that doctors may not be as willing to adopt new innovative tools to transform care.

An announcement Tuesday brings more clarity around AMA’s position on digital health.

Omada Health, a San Francisco digital health company, issued a joint press release revealing that it is partnering with the American Medical Association and Intermountain Healthcare to prevent the onset of Type 2 diabetes in adults who are at risk of developing the chronic condition.

Needless to say that this is significant given Madara’s comments and also because it’s the first time that the American Medical Association is partnering with a digital health company. But perhaps more significantly it shows that when presented with evidence that digital health tools can move the needle in healthcare, doctors will not turn away. In fact, both Intermountain and the AMA had been working with Omada Health for over a year before Tuesday’s announcement.

“This collaboration expands upon the AMA’s robust efforts to prevent type 2 diabetes in this country through the scalable adoption of proven innovative tools and resources that can help physicians better manage patients with chronic conditions,” said AMA President Dr. Andrew W. Gurman, in a statement.

He added that “research shows that participation in evidence-based diabetes prevention programs can cut the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by nearly 60 percent,” noting that Omada’s program can help Intermountain physicians remain connected to patients outside the clinical setting.

Omada Health has been gaining recognition for having an effective solution that can help prediabetes patients from becoming afflicted with full-blown Type 2 diabetes. Last year, it became the first digital health company to publish results of a two-year study in the Journal of Medical Internet Research that showed that patients participating in its digital coaching program were able to maintain a lower body weight and average blood sugar levels two years after beginning the program.

Omada’s program is a 16-week solution where patients are paired up with a full-time health coach who can provide feedback to participants around the clock. Participants can use connected devices in their home that are synced to Omaha’s digital program, with the latter incorporating interactive games and an online support community.

All of the above and the data garnered seemed to move the needle in terms of digital health’s value in this at-risk group. Last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provided pending recognition status to digital health companies — including Omada Health — that leverage remote coaching and mobile tools in order to deliver CDC’s National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP). The program launched in 2012 to target people at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.

The NDPP is centered on participants physically meeting with a trained lifestyle coach and a small group of people making those lifestyle changes to prevent diabetes. Now Omada Health and others can deliver the program remotely using digital health tools.

The nod from the CDC clearly mattered to Intermountain Healthcare.

“The addition of Omada to Intermountain’s diabetes prevention program will expand patient access to a CDC-recognized program,”said Dr. Elizabeth Joy, Intermountain’s Medical Director for Community Health and Clinical Nutrition, in the joint news release. “We anticipate that access to the Omada program will enhance patient engagement and improve health outcomes.”

Photo: Getty, pagadesign

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