John Vander Meulen, General Manager, Wellness & Prevention Inc., a Johnson & Johnson company shares his insights at the Connected Health Summit: Engaging Consumers. John was a member of the Advisory Board and spoke on the "Population Health Management: Tracking Technology’s Impact" panel at the 2014 event.

What do you feel is the biggest obstacle to growth in digital health services?
I think that one of the biggest obstacles for successful growth in digital health services is the sheer volume of health and wellness information currently available to consumers via the web. There are literally thousands of health and wellness-related websites, blogs, and apps in existence today—to the extent that many consumers are now overwhelmed. And, while these resources have certainly helped to make individuals more aware of their personal health and wellness, many have failed to move the needle in terms of helping to promote lasting behavior change. This is because most of these resources are not tailored to the unique needs of the individual. They don’t take into account what motivates the individual, nor do they get to the heart of what is driving the individual to seek better health. Without knowing the mindset of the individual, it’s very difficult to keep them engaged for the long haul, and without engagement, it’s difficult to achieve successful growth within the digital health space. That’s why, at Johnson & Johnson, our digital health coaching programs are designed using a tailored approach to health and wellness coaching.

What will be the biggest driver for digital health market?
New and emerging technologies will certainly be a key driver for the digital health market over the coming years. We’re seeing it right now with tremendous advancements in managing your health using your smartphone. There are devices and apps available now that allow you to check your blood pressure, manage and track your blood sugar, track your activity and diet, and even have access to a portable ECG monitor, all through your smartphone. There has been exponential growth in health-related technology just over the past five years and it will continue to grow. The types of devices that help individuals better understand and manage their own health will be key to driving ongoing engagement with consumers.

Name the most important player in your industry—the one that will have the largest impact on advancing digital health services for consumers.
I really feel that the most important players in our industry have yet to fully emerge, but they are now letting it be known that they have their eye on the health and wellness space. I’m specifically talking about Apple and Google. Both organizations have started to either launch consumer health and wellness technologies or have discussed plans to do so in the very near future. I foresee them becoming key players within the industry based on the data and consumer insights that they have at their disposal. One of the things that make Johnson & Johnson successful in this space is the tremendous consumer insights that we have and that we leverage to build our suite of health and wellness programs. I think both Apple and Google are equipped to join Johnson & Johnson as leaders in consumer insight and, also like J&J, both of these companies have built a reputable and respected brand. For these reasons, I continue to closely monitor both Apple and Google’s emergence into this space.

What features should health and technology providers focus on to convince consumers to sign up for new services or engage them to change health behaviors/adopt preventive care services?
As I mentioned earlier, I think the core of engagement and lasting behavior change really lies in tailoring and customization. When individuals feel that they are using a program that really gets their needs and understands their motivators and lifestyle, they are more likely to stick with it. So, my recommendation would be that health and technology providers focus on providing features that offer up a more tailored and personalized experience for the program user.

What is one key issue around digital health services that people can’t stop talking about?
As I mentioned above, it’s all about engagement. The industry as a whole (health plans, hospitals, physicians, health and technology providers) has yet to fully crack the code when it comes to engagement. And with the introduction of the Triple Aim (improved health, reduced costs, and improving the experience of care) as part of Health Care Reform, patient/member engagement is going to be critical. It’s critical because engagement helps to drive outcomes and satisfaction—two incredibly important measurements in our new world of healthcare.

What is the best model for care collaboration between the technology industry and the healthcare industry to advance the triple aim (cost, access, quality)?
Collaboration is really the key word in this question, because the only way that we can collectively deliver on and advance Triple Aim is by having all constituents within the new healthcare equation working closely together to ensure success. At Johnson & Johnson, we recognize the importance of having ongoing dialogue and collaboration with our health plan, hospital, and physician customers. We actively want to hear from them regarding their challenges, objectives, and new ideas for driving healthcare forward. At the same time, we offer up our insight into behavior modification and programs to help them better shape their care delivery and achieve the desired outcomes they’re looking for. At the end of the day, we’re all concerned about the same thing… delivering quality care to all individuals at a controlled cost.

How ready do you think health industry players are for the dynamic changes (new consumer technologies, better pricing transparency, better access to health records) that will empower consumers to take greater ownership of their own care?
I think the key health industry players started planning for these changes as soon as the early discussions around healthcare reform started happening. Even if reform didn’t come to fruition, the most savvy industry players knew the world of healthcare was rapidly changing. We’ve seen greater consumerism emerging in healthcare over the past 10 years, as individuals were being asked to take a more active role in their healthcare, especially in the way of monetary contribution to their healthcare. So, we’ve seen this coming for a while now—the Affordable Care Act simply accelerated the timeline. As a result, I would say that most health industry players are now at a point where they can successfully deliver on items such as pricing transparency and health record access. However, my feeling is that not all are on the same level when it comes to new consumer technologies and moving forward. I think this is going to be a real source of differentiation within the industry.