LIVE FROM THE GSMA-mHA MOBILE HEALTH SUMMIT:The mobile health industry must take into account the needs of stakeholders beyond the technology sector, Pramod Gaur, VP of TeleHealth for UnitedHealth Group, said this morning. “In every solution that we look at, we should talk about each of the stakeholders and how they fit in to any new solution if it is going to go beyond a pilot, for sustainability,” he argued.
 
Gaur identified the four groups which need to be considered as patients, non-professional caregivers, medical professionals, and the ultimate “payer” for services. In the case of patients, there is a need to improve outcomes, ensure continuity of care, and improve healthcare engagement. For caregivers, there is a need to reduce stress and improve piece of mind. For providers, solutions must integrate with existing workflows, enhance patient outcomes, and support new payment models. And for the payer, there is a desire to reduce cost and improve quality.
 
The need to appeal to patients is a key consideration for success. “The patient needs to be convinced that by buying this solution they are going to get better. Because in most places people will only come to a solution if they feel this is going to help,” he said.
 
However, all too often, the impact on medical professionals is underestimated, and “we don’t pay enough attention to the provider: what is that going to do to their workflow, how is this enormous amount of data going to affect their practice? And do they need some mobile solution to receive the data and take action? In many cases, the challenge is also how to provide them with compensation for providing mobile or telehealth services,” Gaur noted.