According to data from the Department of Health and Human Services, more than 55 percent of seniors fail to take their prescribed medications. Now a new one Artificial intelligence The app aims to change that.
“Together,” a free iPhone app built on generative AI, is designed to support older adults and their caregivers. Administer medications and other health care functions.
Using a smartphone camera, the person simply snaps a picture of the prescription bottle. The accompanying AI technology automatically detects important information about the medication and how it relates to that particular patient.
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Dr. Renee Dua, founder and chief strategy officer of Together in Los Angeles, California, created the app after her personal experience serving as a caregiver for her own parents.
“In very simple terms, it uses AI to help people and their caregivers solve simple tasks, like scheduling appointments, filling medications and taking vitals,” Dua explained in an on-camera interview with Focus News Digital.
“Together,” a free iPhone app built on generative AI, is designed to help older adults and their caregivers manage patient medications and other healthcare tasks. (iStock/Together by Renee)
“It allows you to share data with the people you love so they know what’s going on with you,” he added.
Using a single image of the prescription bottle, the app displays the doctor’s name and contact information, the exact dose of the drug the patient is using, the refill date and any cautionary advice — “for example, if you can’t take it with grapefruit juice,” Dua said.
“We’re not a doctor’s office. We’re here to guide and help.”
“We can basically take the information from that pill bottle and create your entire medical history,” he added.
Based on the prescription information, Together can make preventive care suggestions or recommendations.
For example, if a patient takes metformin, the app will ask. If the person has diabetes. – and, if so, will recommend that the person get their kidneys tested.
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If a refill is available, the user can contact the pharmacy and request the medication.
In the current health care system, the 80 million Americans with more than two chronic conditions consume 92 percent of the U.S. health care budget, Renee co-founder and CEO Nick Desai said in a company press release.
Nick Desai (left) and Dr. Renee Dua (right) are co-founders of Together by Renee. Their goal is to “make the most routine and annoying parts of health care as easy as ordering a pizza.” (Nick Desai and Renee Dua/Together by Renee)
“Despite all the health tech ‘innovations,’ most people don’t take their medications, get preventive exams, check their vitals or see their doctors in a timely manner,” he said. “Together fixes the most routine, annoying parts of healthcare by making it as easy as ordering a pizza.”
Since many old people As young people may not embrace technology, the team designed Together to be as simple and user-friendly as possible, Dua said.
“We built it specifically so there’s no data entry.”
“The app can say, ‘Here’s an appointment with your endocrinologist, so we’ll add it to the calendar for you and we’ll share it with your daughter so she can drive you,'” Dua said as an example.
“These are all helpful ways in which the app is helping patients and their caregivers make routine tasks easier,” Dua said.
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Many of the people most interested in Together are adults with elderly parents, like Dua, she said.
“We’re not living with our parents, but we’re worried about them,” she said. “And it allows us to share data with each other.”
“We believe you should be able to see that your parents are OK, so you can rest easy at night, then wake up in the morning and start all over again,” she added.
‘Not a decision maker’
The Together app is not designed to replace Traditional health careDua pointed out.
“It’s not a decision maker. It’s not designed to replace a doctor’s office or a therapist,” she said. “We’re not a doctor’s office, but we’re here to guide and help.”
“This is for guidance only for patients and their caregivers, and they can share their data with whomever they wish,” it added.
According to data from the Department of Health and Human Services, more than 55 percent of seniors fail to take their prescribed medications. (iStock)
When the company first launched, the founders piloted the app and specifically engaged doctors to get their input, Dua said.
“The doctors loved it — and as a doctor myself, I can vouch for that,” she told Fox News Digital.
“Every time I see patients, I give them four things to do. And when they come back to see me in three months, they’ve only done two of the four.”
With Together, Dua said, software on the phone does virtually everything for patients.
“Routine tests are being done and the results can be easily shared with the doctor,” he said.
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The company is HIPAA compliant, Dua explained, which means it doesn’t share customer data with anyone unless the patient invites someone to see it.
“We take privacy very seriously,” he said. “It’s also built into the way we use it. Artificial intelligence – Everything is de-identified and used strictly for assistance purposes.”
Additional features later this year
According to the company’s press release, Together is currently available for free for Apple smartphones on the Apple App Store and will soon be available for Android smartphones on the Google Play Store.
The company is also planning to introduce additional features to the app later this year.
Soon, users will be able to submit a photo of their insurance card to instantly see their plan benefits, or upload patient intake forms to share with their doctors.
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AI will also be able to measure stress and anxiety via voice monitoring – and call a doctor or pharmacy for a refill.
Source by [Fox News]
