Apple recently updated its free, health-related, open-source app development programs, Research Kit, Care Kit, and Health Kit. It is absolutely a mind-blowing resource for researchers, care providers, and all of humankind owning portable digital devices, which is a substantial percentage of our population(“Internet, social media use and device ownership in U.S. have plateaued after years of growth,” 2018). I am most excited about the long-term applications that will come from the Research and Care Kits.
Researchers can easily design apps from a relatively simple framework to track the health parameters, symptoms and behaviors of millions of willing participants. And this research accelerates the quality of care for people all over the world. Disorders and conditions such as Autism, Parkinson’s, concussions, postpartum depression, sleep disorders, and skin cancers can now be detected earlier and more effectively with apps developed for free through the Reseach Kit. Platforms for rare disease research can be developed on a larger scale with participants all across the world (“Empowering medical researchers, doctors, and you.,” 2019). And they are just scratching the surface as to how this kit can be used.
The Care Kit allows physicians to easily custom design apps for each of their patients. App features could include interactive care plans, scheduled and trackable tasks such as medication adherence, self-reported symptom and side-effects with correlating/corroborating real-time data from their personal devices. Patients can track their progression or digression with relevant charts and communicate directly, or in good time, with their care provider. And this can easily be achieved with developing one app (“Introducing carekit,” 2019).
So, I am excited. And, for part of my DNP project, I need to make an app. I don’t know how I will use it, yet, but it will be awesome!
References
Introducing carekit. (2019). Retrieved from http://carekit.org/
