Denver’s Digital Health Boom
Spencer Campbell | January 2, 2018
Medical care is no longer confined to the doctor’s office. Or even, sometimes, to an actual doctor. That iPhone in your pocket now has the capability to diagnose your cough, answer insurance questions, and get you pregnant…or at least help the process along. Digital health (think: smartphones, social networks, and internet applications that provide patients with health information and better access to physicians) encompasses everything from Fitbits to electronic medical records to telehealth—and the trend is booming in Colorado. Employment in the medical device and diagnostic industry alone increased by 10 percent between 2012 and 2016 in the Denver metro area, which boasts the 11th-highest concentration of digital tech workers in the country. Here, we examine the Colorado companies harnessing cutting-edge tech to deliver more personalized treatment to patients all over the world.
Good Behavior
These local companies strive to reduce medical costs (and boost patient care) by curbing your poor decisions.
We have some bad news: You know the ever-spiraling, prohibitive cost of health care? It’s your fault. Well, not yours, specifically—it’s collectively the fault of all patients. Why? Because we make some really dumb decisions when it comes to our health. We smoke, we eat at McDonald’s, we accidentally see doctors outside our networks. Unnecessary emergency room visits alone add $38 billion annually to the national health care bill. But don’t get defensive. Atrocious policymakers and greedy corporations share the blame. Still, if we want to cut costs, one way is to improve our behavior.
