Who Says Software Platforms Can’t Promote Community and Health?

The influence of social software platforms continues to rise, connecting our world while promoting education, wellness and innovation. At BioMaretplace, we can’t get enough of the current tech crazes and we want to take a moment to highlight the newest technologies and apps that are linking health and communication.

Pokémon Go: The new fitness craze for every age

Find any good Pokémon lately? If you’ve been outside in the last week, you know exactly what we are referring to. But in case you are unaware, Pokémon Go is the newest app craze sweeping the globe. Developed by the San Francisco-based software developer Niantic, the app uses your smartphone’s built-i
GPS to track your location in real time. As you walk around your real-life location, fictional Nintendo creatures known as Pokémon will appear around you, giving you the ability to catch them in tiny sphere cages called poké balls.

What makes this game so fantastic is the fusion of mobile GPS and augmented-reality technology, the app’s ability to bring together people of all ages, and its flawlessly executed mission of encouraging players to explore the real world instead of sitting at home in front of a TV or computer screen. It’s one of the most commercially successful social platforms on the market and one of the first AR games to successfully promote physical activity. It is astounding how fast the craze has grown! In fact, after only a few weeks on the market, it has already surpassed Twitter in number of active users and rivals apps like Facebook and Snapchat in the amount of time per day users spend in-app. Pokémon Go has masterfully interwoven people to build community by meeting up to play and be active together, and it shows no signs of slowing. This is one bandwagon we can get behind. Find it in your app store, get moving and ‘catch them all!’

Charity Miles marries fitness and giving back to others

Apps that utilize GPS are no new innovation, as we have seen. But like with Pokémon Go, they are beginning to be used in truly amazing ways. If catching digital creatures isn’t really your thing, why not use those miles you’re walking to give back to others? Enter Charity Miles, one of the best apps out there for a blend of both fitness and charity.

A free mobile app for both iPhone and Android, Charity Miles tracks your mileage as you walk, run and/or bike and then donates money based on those miles to the partner charity of your choosing. According to the in-app help desk, the money comes from partnering corporate sponsorships from companies such as “Humana, Johnson & Johnson, MasterCard, Kenneth Cole, Timex Sports and others.” Participants have raised over two million dollars so far, which has helped some 28 charities including the Wounded Warrior Project, Achilles International, Pencils of Promise, Feeding America, The Nature Conservancy, Autism Speaks, Habitat for Humanity and others. The app also allows you to integrate your Walgreens Balance® Rewards account to earn points for your miles. As big supporters of making the world a better place, we at BioMarketplace love this app!

MyChart app makes connected healthcare a breeze for patientsr

Imagine the steps you take for a simple doctor visit – calling for an appointment, filling out paperwork, remembering your medical history and current medications, and the list goes on. For many, especially those burdened by the need for frequent medical visits, there may seem to be no relief from this circus.
Now imagine having a system at your fingertips that follows you wherever you go – from the doctor’s office to the emergency room, and even back home to your personal computer and smart phone – and allows you to bypass the mountain of paperwork and endless games of memory and phone tag. That is the MyChart app, which is available on iPhone and android.

MyChart makes managing healthcare a breeze. Users can communicate with their doctors, fill out pre-visit questionnaires, manage appointments, request medication refills, share readings from home medical devices, view medical history and test results, pay bills and more, directly through the app. As if that weren’t impressive enough, the platform also allows users to manage the care of their children and elderly parents.

Connecticut’s Yale New Haven Health System made the 2016 HealthCare’s Most Wired list, sponsored by Hospitals & Health Networks magazine and the American Hospital Association, – and even they use MyChart to help make their patients’ lives easier. Luckily for those of us living outside of Connecticut, they aren’t the only healthcare system using the application. In fact, healthcare systems around the country are using MyChart. If this is something that interests you, check with your network to see if they offer MyChart or a similar solution.

Validic connects the healthcare and wellness industries for a better data access, improved population engagement and cost reductio

MyChart isn’t the only platform out there changing the healthcare landscape for the better. Validic is making waves and updating the way patient care is conducted using their integrated ecosystem which drives advancement among healthcare companies and digital health technology.

According to Validic’s website, the cloud-based platform “cultivates active partnerships and engagement between healthcare companies and digital health technology developers,” ensuring that health and fitness apps and devices connect “to the larger healthcare landscape … providing healthcare companies with the technology and data they need” to advance patient care, coordinate wellness programs, and more.
Validic is already integrated with recognizable companies such as Adidas, JawBone, Fitbit and iHealth, and has positioned itself as one of the medical industry’s premier platforms for convenient access to digital health data, population engagement and cost reduction.

And of course, we can't forget BioMarketplace.com – bringing online shopping to the life science industries

For industry insiders including biotech and pharma researchers, CMOs, CROs, hospitals, and even bio-science serving tech and support companies, BioMarketplace.com is the wave of the partnership and ordering future – or now, as it were.