Healthcare Media
Research: Samantha Taylor
Originally published October 22, 2022
A recent report by Stanford Medicine and Rock Health found that COVID-19 made more people use wearable technologies. The study found that 44% of respondents owned a wearable device, up from 33% in 2019. More and more people are beginning to want to take care of their health, but there has been no advancements or other content beyond wearables on the skin. Fitbits and Apple watches are what people know when it comes to wearable technologies.
The “Quantified Self” movement refers to the increasing use of wearable technologies to collect personal data about oneself and everyday activities. As expressed in the movement’s motto, people who take part in the Quantified Self movement are seeking “self knowledge through self-tracking.” These people want to stay in shape, know how to sleep better, or have a productive morning overall. They are able to do this through tracking their steps in a day or their sleep habits. Metriport is a new platform that allows the user to track the things that are important to them, like habits, symptoms, mood, or nutrition for the sake of improving their health and wellness. It collects quantified-self data on one’s smartphone, and adds features like mood or medicine tracking. Questions like “does my mood affect how much I eat throughout the day?” can be answered through Metriport, exposing new patterns.
Instead of tracking devices that exist on one’s smartphone, we could turn on the television and tune into a new channel that focuses on our individual health, featuring episodes pertinent to our eating habits or sleeping patterns. It would be possible for diabetics to watch their blood sugar change throughout the day on screen to help with managing their diet. The opportunities are endless. Personalization is the key.
The streaming world as it exists today prides itself on personalization. Streaming platforms like Netflix could use wearables in health to create a channel that would host all of a person’s health data. This would create a more personalized approach to health while making it more interactive and enjoyable for the consumer. Creating a new channel about a person’s health can use recommendations and personalization to show what someone should watch next. Someone who watches a show on their sleep habits could then be recommended to watch a show on how to have a less stressful morning baked on if they are seen to be stressed in the mornings.
Entertainment
Peloton recently launched Peloton Guide, a camera-based strength training system that uses AI to allow the user to monitor their form. Users are able to see which muscles they have worked and receive class recommendations to fill in the ones they have not worked yet. Other entertainment companies are developing ways to cater to our health.
News and information
People are able to view their health information already by accessing their smartphones or smart watches. The health app on the iPhone lets users see their sleeping habits, daily steps, or vitals. It also measures how an individual’s blood glucose, heart rate, and respiratory rate change over time. For people who use Fitbits, their stress levels can be recorded or their skin temperature. Apple watches help the user how many calories they had burned during a workout. There are many different ways our health information already has been broadcasted to us.
There have been problems in the past with wearables and privacy issues, which makes some consumers wary of trying them again. A person’s health data could be sold to a third party with this opportunity which could cause many privacy concerns. Media companies would have to be aware of these concerns and be upfront with their consumers about where their data is going and how it is being used.
Positioning
With the normalization of healthcare media, brands will be able to personalize health content in a way that has not been possible before. Generic ads mentioning the best way to lose weight would fade into the distance. In its place, specific targeted content to each individual would emerge. Media companies and brands could develop channels that help each person manage their health better. Media already has a place in encouraging good health and taking care of yourself. Therefore, a media company could use these different wearable technologies and tracking elements to create personalized content, in the form of channels, to allow consumers to look after themselves and their health in a fun and interactive way.
Additional Resources
Wearable technology in health care: Getting better all the time ,Deloitte
Wearable Tech and the Future of Health,The University of Calgary
Digital Healthcare Ecosystems Are Changing Healthcare As We Know It, Forbes
