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How to use digital measures of physical activity for Digital Health Technology Developer

Why use digital measures of physical activity?

By focusing development on a core set of digital measures of physical activity with the greatest likelihood of widespread adoption in clinical care and research based on evidence of their meaningfulness to patients across therapeutic areas, digital health technology developers can invest resources efficiently, while positioning themselves as leaders in the field.

Developing technologies and algorithms to more accurately capture DATAcc by DiMe’s core digital measures of physical activity can potentially provide greater market access with broad applicability of physical activity measures to support care providers as they assess, prescribe, and refer patients for physical activity and/or drug developers interested in adopting digital measures of physical activity in clinical research.

Get started using these resources to build products that capture the digital measure(s) of physical activity that your customers need most

Step 1: Identify the benefits of developing digital measures of physical activity
  • Define the business case and market opportunities for digital measures of physical activity. For example:
    • Identify gaps in current methods of digital measurement of physical activity and level of market saturation 
    • Determine the market opportunities for developing PA measures for various uses of technology: health and wellness, clinical care, clinical research, etc.
    • Identify your target population/s. Are you targeting healthy adults or specific patient populations?
  • Define goals and objectives of developing technology to capture digital measures of physical activity 
Step 2: Develop products to measure the core set of digital measures of physical activity using common technical definitions
  • Develop products that measure the core set of digital measures of physical activity, for the greatest commercial success and clinical impact. 
  • Harmonized technical definitions of digital measures of physical activity will move the whole field forward by supporting standardization and interoperability. Don’t be left behind. Use the measure ontologies developed for all measures included in the core set of digital measures of physical activity.
  • Incorporate inclusive design of digital health measurement products.
  • Build products that are consistent with best practices in usability, human factors, and human-centered design.
Step 3: Evaluate and document the performance of your tools for digitally measuring the most clinically valuable measures of physical activity
Step 4: Incorporate digital measures of physical activity in a regulatory strategy or to support clinical care
  • Search DiMe’s resources related to digital health products to support your business strategies as you consider adopting digital measures of physical activity in clinical research and/or clinical care.

Step Into Action: Adopting Core Measures of physical activity for digital health technology companies

Dianna Henry leads product development of various digital health and wellness tools at a mid-sized digital health technology company. She has identified a sizable market for measuring physical activity (PA) among adults who are above their desired weight or have chronic conditions but are determined to take steps toward improving their health. Diana is interested in developing user-centric digital measurement products that capture the most valuable data for patients. Rather than starting from scratch and investing resources to identify which digital PA measures to prioritize, Dianna begins to build out her product strategy using DATAcc by DiMe’s core set of digital measures of physical activity. Based on the evidence of their meaningfulness to patients and their readiness to be adopted in clinical care and research, she wants to build tools that are highly likely to be adopted.

    Dianna wants her company’s products to be known for their performance and relevance. She uses DATAcc by DiMe’s measure ontologies as a roadmap to ensure the development of technology appropriately captures the necessary properties and is consistent with the technical definitions outlined for each measure in the core measure set. 

    Dianna works closely with the engineers and developers within her company to run verification studies for each measure in the core set. She takes care to appropriately document the performance of each DHT her team develops, including verification of the sensor, performance of the algorithm in a diverse population (analytical validation), and usability of the tool. Dianna is setting her company up for success, by intentionally investing in measures of physical activity with the greatest potential for widespread use in clinical care and research.
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