The ACC and the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) are collaborating on best practices for device and app makers to provide deeper understanding of products that manage cardiovascular health. The working group – which includes members from ACC, Philips, Samsung, Abbott and Omron – will develop evaluation criteria that companies can use to better educate clinicians as they recommend devices to their patients.

Through this project, experts from the tech sector and health care setting will build guidance for device manufacturers in how to communicate the capability of individual products to clinicians and support that appropriate devices are being recommended for use by patients.

"The digital transformation of health care delivery is a priority for the ACC, and we are committed to leading the way in finding and implementing innovative ways to transform cardiovascular care and improve heart health," said John S. Rumsfeld, MD, PhD, FACC, chief innovation officer and chief science officer of the ACC. "Through this collaborative effort we're spanning health care and tech to give both clinicians and patients confidence when using health care devices to monitor and treat cardiovascular disease."

A multidisciplinary group of leaders in AI and digital health recognized gaps in knowledge around implementing health care devices into patient care and determined the need for best practices during discussions at ACC's Applied Health Innovation Consortium 2020 summit on virtual care, of which CTA is a member.

So far, the biggest challenge facing device manufacturers is enabling clinicians to use tech solutions and educating them on when to integrate tech into their workflow. This project aims to provide device manufacturers with a best practices framework to give clinicians necessary device selection information, such as standards-based metrics for accuracy, privacy and security.

"Health tech devices are an extension of clinicians' practice, so when you're unable to see a doctor or experience symptoms the device can step in and report the information to your provider," said Rene Quashie, VP, digital health, CTA. "Frameworks like ours will help clinicians make an informed recommendation to their patients with the goal of providing holistic care and, ultimately, better outcomes for patients."

This effort, which will look at three use cases of devices – prevention, screening or diagnosis, and health management or treatment – is co-chaired by Michael V. McConnell, MD, MSEE, FACC, senior clinical lead, Google Health and clinical professor, Stanford School of Medicine, and Ritu Thamman, MD, FACC, ACC Innovation Work Group member. In addition, the working group members include representatives from Abbott, BioIntellisense, HP, Omron Healthcare Inc., Philips, Samsung Electronics, Valencell and Well Being Digital Limited (WBD101).

"The digital health care market is growing rapidly, and clinicians need to be confident in the appropriateness of devices for different patient groups," Thamman said. "By providing best practices for new apps and devices, clinicians and patients can be assured that they are using the most appropriate digital tools to enhance care options and potentially improve patient outcomes."

This work also builds upon a unique digital health whitepaper released last year by CTA and the Heart Rhythm Society that recommended best practices for using wearable technology to manage personal health, including detecting and monitoring cardiovascular biometrics.

The working group will hold a series of meetings in 2021 and is scheduled to release the best practices document by the end of the year.

Keywords: Workflow, Biometry, Technology, Electronics, Electronics, Medical, Artificial Intelligence, Innovation

< Back to Listings