A future where your toothbrush alerts you to a risk of cavities, and your bandages changed colors when they needed to be changed is not as far away as you think. Such digital value-add features are the future of consumer health products, and similar applications are already heading into the market.

On October 26, IQVIA’s digital consumer health experts, we will host The Next Wave of Self-Care Digital Health webinar and explore how the next wave of digital health technologies are changing the consumer health landscape, enhancing user experiences, and generating new value for brand owners.

A Digital Health Primer

Digital Health is the merging of technology and healthcare products to improve health outcomes.

The first wave of digital health tools has empowered users to manage their own health, and to proactively identify issues that require healthcare interventions. Wearables and fitness watches monitor health and wellness, providing consumers and healthcare professionals with data about the user’s heart health, exercise, and mental health.

However, we are now on the cusp of the next wave of digital consumer health trends.

The evolution of digital health is expanding beyond wellness apps, to transform the way consumers use products. The most innovative companies are looking at ways to use connected sensors, smartphone cams, diagnostic algorithms, and wearables to capture data, provide feedback, and help consumers and healthcare professionals customize how they manage their own health or those of their patients.

Real-world Applications

The new data points available through the use of technology is continuous providing what we call ‘digital biomarkers’ – a combination of physical and digital information that offers the ability to identify potential new claims, products uses and paths to better health outcomes.

Using the digital biomarkers captured by these devices can be used by the consumer health industry as objective evidence to support the development of new products and to validate innovative outcomes claims – enabling companies to gain a new market advantage.

For example, IQVIA Consumer Health recently used a digital health tool to help a skincare company capture consumer claims in a real-world study of 500 participants about their experience with a product. The manufacturer was able to use these claims to differentiate the product in the marketplace.

Others are combining consumer products with digital health features to create new value, like virtual reality pain management that has the potential to compete with physical products. Such digital health options can transform the way consumers engage with over-the-counter health products, and how they view their role in the healthcare journey.

A new wave of innovation: Are you on board?

Technology and digitalization offer many opportunities for brands to generate performance claims, build new products, and add features to existing products that will make them stand out on store shelves. The challenge consumer health companies face now is where to begin. The possibilities may be endless, but budgets are finite. Companies need a way to determine how to integrate digital health and diagnostics into their innovation pipelines.

Consumers want products that reflect their other digital experiences, and they will get excited when familiar brands leverage digital technology to enhance their product experience. It is an exciting trend. The potential is huge, but it is unchartered territory for consumer health companies, many of whom are uncertain about where to begin.

At The Next Wave of Self-Care Digital Health webinar, we will answer many of these questions, offering guidance on how to maximize the value in your digital health innovation journey. Register now and we look forward to seeing you there.