DIGITAL HEALTH BRIEFING: Apple Watch shipments grow by double digits - Nokia settles on buyer for digital health business - Healthcare should mimic retail, CMS says

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APPLE WATCH SHIPMENTS GROW BY DOUBLE DIGITS, SPEARHEADING APPLE'S HEALTH EFFORTS: Global shipments of the Apple Watch grew by double digits during Q1 2018, according to the company's quarterly earnings. While Apple doesn't break out details about wearables, growth in Watch shipments signals a positive outlook for the company's healthcare initiatives - CEO Tim Cook called the development a "major strategic thrust of ours."

The Apple Watch spearheads the company's healthcare efforts, boasting several partnerships with researchers and health systems. For example, Apple is using consumer data collected from the Apple Heart study to seek FDA approval for a new "investigational device." A consent form sent to study participants noted that some de-identified user data would be a part of the company's FDA submission. MobiHealthNews says it confirmed that the "device" was the Heart Study app itself, which likely includes the algorithm used to identify heart arrhythmia. The Apple Heart Study launched in November 2017 in conjunction with Stanford Medicine and telehealth firm American Well.

Although the Apple Watch is leading Apple's health strategy, it isn't the company's sole health-focused offering:

• ResearchKit and CareKit, Apple's developer frameworks, provide the basis for researchers to develop and maintain apps that track health data. Most recently, CareKit was used to develop the Sharp Healthcare Companion App to aid patients during their surgery experience.
• An update to the iOS Health app in March enables iPhone users in the US to receive, store, and share their electronic health records with 37 providers in the country. The Health app update is an important step in solving the interoperability issues that plague the EHR market.
• Apple unveiled the AC Wellness Network in February 2018. The group of internal health clinics will provide Apple's employees and their families with healthcare services. Current job listings for AC Wellness suggest that the network will offer primary care services, access to health and exercise coaches, and on-site lab tests. It's also likely that Apple will use the medical clinics to test and strengthen its health services and products.

BI Intelligence

NOKIA TO SELL DIGITAL HEALTH BUSINESS BACK TO WITHINGS CO-FOUNDER: Nokia will sell its digital health offering to Eric Carrer, the co-founder of Withings - the company that Nokia bought its health offerings from in 2016, according to TechCrunch. The segment is a part of Nokia Technologies that includes its line of wearables, connected thermometers, and scales as well as its health app. While Nokia Technologies revenue grew substantially in Q4 2017 - 79% year-over-year (YoY) - the digital health business was a deadweight, dragging down revenue expectations of Nokia Technologies, according to the company's earnings report.

Nokia's exit from the smart health industry doesn't necessarily indicate a full exit from the digital health market. The company's foray into healthcare wearables opened the door to multiple relationships with healthcare companies and provided Nokia with a "new perspective" on the healthcare space, Nokia chief strategy officer Kathrin Buvac said. As we reported in February, if Nokia opts to stay in healthcare, it'll likely position itself as a business-to-business and licensing company. This has been successful for the company in the telecom and mobile tech space - Nokia reported around $28 billion in revenue in 2017. Within healthcare, Nokia could offer IoT and wireless solutions for hospitals and healthcare systems.

CMS CHIEF WANTS HEALTHCARE TO TAKE A PAGE FROM RETAIL'S BOOK: The healthcare industry needs to begin replicating the transparency of the retail industry, US Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma said Monday during World Health Care Congress, according to CNBC. Health systems should start by posting their prices online, before enabling easy consumer access to health records. Verma noted that across many other industries, such as retail and finance, operational transparency was par for the course, however, healthcare lags. The interoperability and transparency of healthcare is a core focus for the CMS. Verma announced several new interoperability initiatives in March with the aim of developing a free-flowing healthcare ecosystem that gives patients greater control over their data. For instance, at the conference, the CMS unveiled MyHealthEData, which ensures that patients receive a copy of their entire health record electronically. Meanwhile, healthcare firms are working to improve data interoperability to ensure they're prepared for the reimbursement shift to value-based care from fee-for-service. More than 70% of healthcare financial executives say they must improve data interoperability within the next three years to ensure the success of value-based care, according to a Healthcare Financial Management Association survey.

HEALTH SYSTEM DRIVES 2000-TO-1 ROI WITH BIG DATA ANALYTICS PLATFORM: Texas-based University Health System is using big data analytics to target and engage with potential mammogram patients, yielding significant returns, according to Healthcare IT News. The health system partnered with data management firm Tea Leaves Health, which uses patient-relationship management (PRM) software to identify and contact eligible patients for mammogram screening services. Tea Leaves Health combines patient records with demographic and social media data to provide healthcare organizations with patient profiles that inform healthcare provision and outreach strategies. The platform facilitates patient engagement through targeted ads, e-mail, and traditional mail. Early results of the program resulted in a 2,000-to-1 return on investment for University Health System, reflecting how big data analytics tools can enable organizations to utilize available information on healthcare trends and tap substantial revenue opportunities. Combining the increased use of big data with patient outreach tools provides hospitals with revenue opportunities by increasing the awareness and usage of specialty medical services and avoiding costly urgent care visits by promoting preventative care. Health systems' use of big data is likely to become more common. Seventy-six percent of global healthcare executives plan to accelerate their investments in big data in the next two years, according to SAP.

IN OTHER NEWS:

• The US National Institute of Health (NIH) unveiled May 6 as the official start date of its All of Us precision medicine research initiative. The project aims to build a national research cohort of 1 million US participants to test the feasibility of a nation-wide precision medicine database.
• Facebook is adding a designated area for its blood donation feature - available in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan - that lets users see donation opportunities nearby, according to MobiHealthNews. The social media platform allows consumers in these countries to identify themselves as blood donors on Facebook, and receive notifications when there's demand for their blood type.
• The UK's National Health Service (NHS) announced a deal with Microsoft to update existing systems to Windows 10 in a push to tighten security measures, DigitalHealth reports. The measure comes after the WannaCry cyberattack affected one-third of NHS trusts in May 2017.
• US health system Providence St. Joseph Health (PSJH) announced Monday the launch of its Virtual Health System - one of the largest telemedicine networks in the US. The new offering aims to deliver several core services to rural and underserved communities by connecting patients with PSJH's 1,500 caregivers.

Business Insider Intelligence research associate Nicky Lineaweaver contributed to this briefing.