Table 4.
Solutions for Community‐Based Interventions and Health Technology
| Key Solutions for Community‐Based Interventions and Health Technology | |
|---|---|
| Systems‐based issues of technology use | Leverage the healthcare system to focus on readmission rates and enable community/tech‐based programming within the “30‐d window” |
| Incorporate training on integration of consumer health tech and community‐based care in teaching for the next generation of healthcare providers | |
| Multidisciplinary connections, particularly pharmacist, community, health/social workers, and patient navigators | |
| Integrate community program data into EHRs | |
| Technology solutions and audiences | Tool/app that supports patient needs with capabilities of lifestyle management, medication management, goals that link to providers, and support of evidence‐based programs (eg, DPP) |
| Crowdsource ideas from patients about what would be transformative in their communities for DM care | |
| Engage schools for healthy behaviors/health education | |
| Text messaging program to deliver health messaging, policy, and advocacy | |
| Continuous glucose monitoring for patients with T2DM in remote or underserved populations (tech translation) | |
| Technology solutions and audiences | Engage people with obesity to prevent development of other cardiometabolic conditions |
| “Consumerize” and/or gamify patient portals | |
| Adapt technology based on populations | |
| Mobilizing faith‐based communities | |
| Certification/standardization of technology | Develop validation/certification for wearables/apps/online programs (eg, use AHA's Heart Check Certification Program for food as a template) |
| Identify criteria and filters for high‐quality technology. Develop recommendations for how data are protected, stored, and shared | |
| Public awareness | Create a campaign (with public personas or celebrities) including simplified messaging around DM, obesity, high blood pressure, cholesterol, and their links to CVD |
| Encourage middle school and high school students to get into healthcare professions | |
| Development of audience‐specific messages, focusing on end users such as oldest and youngest | |
| Getting patients to use technology | Using behavioral economics principles, develop and test incentive programs |
| Combine health tech features within already popular non‐health‐focused apps (ie, fashion, news, social networking, and celebrity gossip) | |
| Scale existing/new apps for positive reinforcement | |
| Research | Pilot programs in smaller or underserved communities to understand and prioritize what actions and programs to implement |
| Engage universities and researchers on novel mechanisms to reach vulnerable populations | |
| Recruit American Indian/Alaska Native populations and other underserved or disproportionately affected race/ethnicity populations into genome‐sequencing studies | |
| Partnerships | Create strategic partnerships with nontraditional partners and industries to increase awareness of and better treat people with prediabetes and DM |
| Engage trusted leaders in the community to deliver health education (eg, clergy, barbers, community health workers) | |
| Evidence‐based employee wellness and promotion of healthy workplaces | |
| Advocacy | Reimbursement strategies to drive scale for devices/technology, community programs, and healthcare provider time‐to‐use data for care |
| Better reimbursement for telehealth, DPP, Medicaid, and food programs | |
| Having alternate, reimbursable forms of communication between patients and providers | |
| Promote DM programming to be used for hospitals’ “community benefit dollars,” which are required by the Affordable Care Act for hospitals to invest in their communities | |
AHA indicates American Heart Association; CVD, cardiovascular disease; DM, diabetes mellitus; DPP, Diabetes Prevention Program; EHRs, electronic health records; T2DM, type 2 diabetes mellitus.