It is common to think of digital health as medicine without a human being attached, an intervention where the user bypasses the need for a health care professional’s expertise. Whilst, in some companies this is the case, at Vively, we have found it to enhance the client- practitioner bond and when you add a spoonful of compassion the impact has great potential. Whilst digital health is somewhat exploding, human suffering is still at an all-time high, this is why the combination of the wise and judicial use of health technology in combination with the wisdom and human connection from the practitioner holds such potential. 

The Covid-19 pandemic heralded in a change in healthcare of mammoth proportions, due to the extreme infectivity of the virus, doctors and patients turned to “at scale” digital interactions for the first time. Keeping people in contact with their doctors and health care professionals helped people to continue to manage their chronic conditions, get reassurance, pregnancy support, counselling and more via a screen. But many clinicians were concerned, especially around privacy, patient safety and access to those who lack digital literacy, so careful consideration is vital. 

The same goes for the use of digital data and the interfaces that are designed to help people feel empowered about their health, understand at a deeper level the dangers and therefore make plans, goals and changes that will support them in mitigating their risks. All doctors and health care professionals know how challenging it is to help a person not only understand their condition, but to manage their anxiety around it and help them and their families make the necessary changes that will optimise their health long term. It is multi-layered, culturally sensitive and complex.

The advice given changes depending upon a person’s heath literacy, their socio-economic and physical capabilities, their mental health, their work-life, their financial position and their preferences, beliefs, accessibility and attitudes. The level of attention and commitment required to properly deliver this kind of social medicine, is rarely accounted for in a modern clinic set-up. But people are in desperate need, and they don’t know what to do, so, they are turning to programs to help them understand themselves and help them get motivated, educated, empowered  and inspired to change.

A recent article on AI, takes into the nuanced patient-centred model that medical competency is more than technical expertise- but rather “must include relational moral competency, particularly empathy, compassion and trust”. But more than that, empathy, trust and compassion is not a one way street, and includes “the intuitions, strengths, and emotions of both the patient and the physician”. 

This co-operative relationship is rarely considered in the technology world and \ is often considered “soft” in the medical model. Could these ‘soft” skills be the very essence of what is required going forward?

If the technological side is made more efficient and accessible, could the empathy and the compassion become more accessible, readily available and more effective? Compassionate care in the digital context is currently unguided. Let’s take the example of Digital mental health interventions- to date existing scales typically focus on usability, acceptance and effectiveness and have not been analysed for compassion, and it is unclear on how much this criteria impacts the uptake of these kinds of technology in the healthcare setting. 

Digital solutions can automatically record data and provide helpful insights, for both diagnosis and supporting educational understanding, potentially giving the clinician more time to engage in the complex, delicate dance that we call “soft” medicine, paving the way for the psychologically enriched space, helping patients become the co-designers in their care and more engaged in the outcomes. Health care professionals would become the collaborators, the orchestral conductors, holding the mirror up to the parts that can’t yet be seen. 

At Vively, this appears to be the case.  Using a person’s real-time data such as glucose levels, HRV, exercise measurements, and other metrics, such as diet and nutritional assessments, stress levels and sleep can help a person see the impact of their choices on a key homeostatic marker.

But not only that, it can help them reflect and feel into their decisions- in a way acting like a accountability coach through the day. But illuminating lifestyle choices, can also bring up some confusion, anxiety, personality triats such as perfectionism and body image concerns, which need to be recognised and supported, with compassion by the health care professional by way of advice, compassion and empowerment to change.

These kinds of emotionally burdened responses can also become the invitation to personal growth if discovered within a compassionate relationship and  without such professional involvement, the data driven technology may miss key aspects of a person’s wholistic care and run the risk of causing more harm than good. 

Technology and Data in health care is here to stay, and like all technological advances will come fast and unabated and with the addition of AI and it’s pattern spotting algorithms, it may feel for some like our skills is no longer needed. But humans are not patterns, we are complex systems and at our core is the need for connection, trust, humanity and care. So as professionals we can either feel endangered or we can lean in and elevate the “soft” skills, which were once teased become the cornerstone of our human centred approach.