Apple has been one of the most transformative company of our lifetime . Products like theiPhone , theiPad , and theiPodhave established or transform full segments of the engineering grocery , but the company ’s biggest impact could be in health .
Smartwatches and fitness trackers exist long before the firstApple Watch , but Apple ’s foray into the wellness infinite transformed how we stay in shape . As the popularity of the Apple Watch and iPhone has grown , so has their utility in do your health , especially as third - political party app developer and equipment makers have created new experiences .
However , Apple Health is more than just the Apple Watch , and the latest composition from Mark Gurman suggests that Apple is work on a new AI - powered Doctor as part of a revamped Apple Health . Here ’s why that could transform your health .
Integrations with every third-party
What do you use to track your wellness ? I use an Apple Watch for many things , but I also have a Fitbit . I employ aDexcomG7 uninterrupted glucose monitor ( CGM ) for tracking my blood sugar , as well as anOura Ringor theRingConn Gen 2 , and all of these also sync data to Apple Health .
Then , there are the consolidation with your medical chart provider , which rest Apple Health ’s greatest military capability . It ’s widely available in the US but define globally , and it allows you to see all the health information from your medical records directly in the Health app on your iPhone .
I ’ve been using the Apple Watch and Apple Health to handle my wellness since I had a heart attempt four years ago . The integration with your health supplier and the ability to take out and expose your condition , test results , and medicine mean Apple Health can be a single root of true statement for a holistic picture of your wellness .
Aside from a few Android - specific brands , most health product integrate with Apple Health . Many of the best scales can directly sync your latest weight reading to Apple Health , while CGMs , other fittingness tracker , saucy rings , and medical devices can all tot valuable data to your iPhone ’s health record .
More accurate than your doctor
AI will inevitably be prevalent throughout every facet of life , but Apple Health ’s integration and astray - range reach expose a fussy flaw in the current healthcare system .
After my heart attack , I realized that the cardinal trouble with the universal way that doc gather data point is that it lacks enough linguistic context . If you ’ve put weight on since your last visit , your doctor may not dig too deep into it and may say to try and shed a few dog pound . However , being able-bodied to see your exercising weight over several months can allow your doctor to catch any potential issues early .
The same applies to rakehell pressure machines and cardiac measuring devices like Kardia Mobile 6 - lead-in Portable EKG and CGMs . The two fully grown CGM God Almighty permit your Dr. to access your blood sugar data point directly , which is widely used by most endocrinologists who prescribe CGMs to their patient role .
Apple Health has more information than your MD , but crucially , it ’s also far more accurate and relevant . Scales like the Withings Body Scan can cover far more than just your weighting ; they also take EKGs , seize a consistence scan , and supply granular information about several key wellness metrics . This data can be integrated into your iPhone and made approachable to AI .
Integration is the key
Apple ’s ability to carry medical psychiatric hospital and government bodies to squeeze technology in the medical industry has been key to the economic value of the Apple Watch and Apple Health .
Many established aesculapian profession have processes and procedures that require all-inclusive resources to oversee , but Apple — as well as Samsung and Google — have the resources and desire to facilitate core alteration . The result is that the Apple Watch has saved many life , and this integrating will be cardinal to an AI - powered doctor .
envisage being able to take your iPhone why you have a specific symptom , such as big headaches , tiredness , or lightheadedness . Your doctor will then call for a few play along - up questions and prescribe something or , in some casing , unravel further checks . In a few weeks or months , further follow - ups and some of the same questions and tests will require to be repeat .
Now , imagine a world where this is AI - powered and much simpler . AI can invariably monitor the patient in the background and proactively alert the doctor when there ’s something to control further . alternatively of waiting until you spot a trouble , your iPhone can help you and your doc catch it too soon and hopefully increase the chances of a full recovery .
Key features I’d like the Apple AI Doctor to have
Second , I recall the ideal form for Apple ’s AI - powered Doctor is not to interchange your existing health care supplier . Rather , it should raise how you and your doctor communicate and work together to solve your health . There are few details on what the Apple AI Doctor will do , but having spent broad meter in the aesculapian system as a patient , I can think of a few lineament that I hope Apple bring on .
First , I want to ensure that my doc can automatically see all the information in the Apple Health app . The weight in my aesculapian record should be an average of my daily recording , not a statistic from an arbitrary moment . My blood pressure , origin glucose , and EKG recitation will be far more useful if doctors and advisor can see the data from my Apple Watch .
secondly , I want to ask the AI Doctor questions about my wellness in a conversational feeling . The revamped Health app will reportedly also focus on intellectual nourishment inhalation , and as a diabetic , being able to ask an AI about the impact of specific food for thought , action , or habits can transmute your wellness over time .
Third , I need Apple to integrate this AI with diabetic apps . By far , my biggest wellness trouble is diabetes . Although it ’s under control condition , and I had more damage to my essence at the time of the heart attack , diabetes is a deadly disease , and I would love to be able to use Apple Health+ as my doctor , who ’s available 24/7 .
Although I want this to mold with all apps , the fundamental characteristic I ’d like at launching is for diabetics , as AI could transform how we ego - care . I labor long distance , but I ca n’t require Siri about my blood sugar while drive . On long drives , I must be thrifty that my stock sugar does n’t crash while drive and that I time any halt to eat to coincide with freeway service . I have to do this manually while driving or before leaving , but I really need to be capable to necessitate how AI when it wait I ’ll need to corrode .
It ’s unclear exactly what Apple ’s AI Doctor will be up to of — and whether the company will even launch it — but the potentiality for an AI Doctor in your air pocket at all times could transform how we manage our wellness . I ’m particularly excited to see how this develops as a patient and how I can integrate it into my health .
