Meet the Health Data Explorers

The Health Data Exploration project, undertaken by the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, is shaping the way healthcare uses health-related data.

With a surge in ways to track individual health and fitness data wearable devices such as Fitbit or smartphone apps, more data is becoming readily available. Researchers from UC San Diego and UC Irvine believe this data, and other information collected in a more passive manner such as through social media, can fill in gaps that are left by more traditional health data collection methods and give healthcare providers a broader, more complete picture of a patient’s health.

Individuals can join the network to provide this data to researchers and companies, who in turn study the information and use it to discern better ways to treat patients or create more helpful health-related devices and apps.

For EMS personnel, health data can be key in providing effective and efficient patient care. EMS providers can get a more well-rounded picture of a patient, such as a detailed medical history, a better look at the physical fitness of a patient and more information on the  everyday lifestyle and behaviors of patients.

The EMS system currently uses health data to influence research and determine the best patient outcomes, and initiatives such as the Health Data Exploration project aim to provide more of this data for healthcare providers.

For more information on the Health Data Exploration project or to take a look at some of their research, visit hdexplore.calit2.net.