The Peterson Health Technology Institute (PHTI) has added hypertension and mental health to its list of digital health technologies (DHTs) to consider for clinical effectiveness and economic impact.
The Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Agency is “cutting through the hype” in digital health, recognizing that DHT has great potential to improve health care, and encouraging payers, providers, and patients to become independent on DHT. It was founded last year with a pledge to provide a comprehensive perspective. However, information regarding the benefits in actual practice was also limited.
It is affiliated with the Institute for Clinical and Economic Reviews (ICER), which provides cost-effectiveness evaluations of prescription drugs sold on the U.S. market.
According to PHTI, 80% of digital health products lack clinical evidence, and many are not subject to FDA review. PHTI claims that its main objective is to identify the most promising technologies and accelerate their adoption in the medical field.
The decision to begin researching DHT in people with high blood pressure and mental health conditions was made because there is so much DHT on the U.S. market, said PHTI Executive Director Caroline Pearson.
“Payers, patients, and healthcare providers need access to transparent, independent evaluations to better understand which tools are most effective at improving patient outcomes and affordability. “There is,” she said. In addition to clinical and economic evaluations, PHTI will also investigate the impact of DHT on health equity, user experience, and privacy and security.
Our review on hypertension focuses on technologies that offer remote monitoring of blood pressure and promise to promote self-management through increased physical activity, strict medication adherence, and reduce clinic visits. PHTI notes that in the United States, 120 million adults suffer from high blood pressure and that “hundreds of millions of dollars” have been invested in DHT to improve management.
Meanwhile, the mental health overhaul will focus on virtual care for depression and anxiety, which affects nearly 60 million U.S. adults, resulting in videos that provide talk therapy, medication management, and medical services. The market for messaging-based support systems will reach nearly $12 billion. coaching, peer support, etc. Some of the claims made about DHT are that it can help reduce anxiety and depression, improve patient satisfaction, and reduce expenses.
This is the second review published by PHTI, after HTA began evaluating DHT for diabetes and virtual musculoskeletal care in October last year. Results are expected soon, while reports on hypertension and depression/anxiety are expected to be released later this year.
