Supportive tools can lessen the burden of disease management and meet patients’ appetites to integrate technology into daily health monitoring.
For asthma and COPD patients, digital health offers an opportunity to address key barriers to adherence in five new ways: (1) delivering more streamlined, personal strategies to help reduce the burden of disease management and compliance; (2) motivating patients to improve adherence through monetary incentives, games and other behavioral strategies; (3) supporting and encouraging appropriate inhaler technique; (4) electronically monitoring adherence; and (5) merging various measures of asthma and COPD activity, risk and impairment with other health and personal data, producing a more holistic picture of patient health and well-being.