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Should My Device Be Connected?

Live from Pharmapack Europe, a device design consultant shared an approach for deciding on connectivity and packaging upgrades, along with the real question you should be asking yourself when making the call.

At Pharmapack 2019, Alex Driver, Senior Consultant at UK-Based design and development firm Team Consulting, discussed med devices going connected.
At Pharmapack 2019, Alex Driver, Senior Consultant at UK-Based design and development firm Team Consulting, discussed med devices going connected.

Patients and consumers are rightfully worried about what happens to their data once it’s in a company’s hands. From major phone glitches to a smart thermometer company selling data to sterile wipe manufacturers, there’s a lot of uncertainty that comes with the territory of using any smart device.

At Pharmapack 2019, Alex Driver, Senior Consultant at UK-Based design and development firm Team Consulting, said that despite the concerns, people still use phones and other connected devices daily because (obviously) there’s a value that far exceeds the perceived cons.

The barriers to going connected with medical devices include negative attitudes toward sharing data, technical complexity and potential wastefulness.

But for many devices, there may be enough pros to forge on with connecting. These opportunities include:

  • Improving patient competence

  • Helping patient engagement

  • Communicating therapy benefits

  • Adherence support

  • Disease self-management

  • Differentiating among competition

  • Building confidence in clinical trial results

  • Learning about patient behavior

Driver was very clear in his message: “To connect or not to connect” isn’t the right question. Drug and device manufacturers should really be asking themselves, “What problem am I trying to solve?”

There has to be value (such as the opportunities listed above) that meet patient, healthcare provider, payer and regulatory needs.

He discussed a potential approach for deciding to go connected. There are three categories of solutions:

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