Nonprofit Organization Evaluates Digital Healthcare Technologies

Launched by the Peterson Center on Healthcare, the Peterson Health Technology Institute (PHTI) analyzes and determines the efficacy of digital health solutions to enhance health and reduce costs.

The growth of digital health technologies displays their high potential for improving the health system. However, this process consists of many hardships  related to the lack of information surrounding digital health tools.

In pursuit of further efficiency, the Peterson Center on Healthcare created PHTI. This solution is designed to perform independent evaluations of digital health tools. Upon collection of practical data related to health technologies, PHTI will highlight the most efficient while making note of those that are not effective. This will tprovide purchasers and investors with reliable information.

“Technology has the power to transform healthcare, improving outcomes for millions of Americans while also reducing our rapidly growing delivery costs,” said Michael A. Peterson, CEO of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, in a press release. “It’s clear that digital tools and artificial intelligence can provide a range of benefits to patients, but we have an inadequate understanding of what works and how much it should cost. By producing independent, evidence-based research on emerging technologies, the Peterson Health Technology Institute will help improve and accelerate healthcare innovation in the United States.”

In the press release that announced the launch, the organization also predicted that the global digital health market will have a value of $1.5 trillion by 2030. Despite this estimate along with the growth of digital health investments in the US in the last ten years, many tools lack credibility.

“As digital health tools replace and augment traditional healthcare, they should both deliver better health outcomes and improve affordability,” said Caroline Pearson, Executive Director of the Peterson Center on Healthcare. “In order for technology to successfully contribute to the goal of a more effective and efficient healthcare system, patients, providers, and payers need better information about what works.”

The testing of technology used in healthcare is common, largely due to the rapid growth of these solutions. For example, in March, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) announced its plans to work with Rocket VR Health (RVH) to test a virtual reality digital therapeutic.

RVH offers virtual reality therapeutic programs to support patient well-being and transform mental health treatment. These programs pursue goals by making efforts to improve the quality of life, symptom burden, and distress among those with blood cancer.

In partnership with MGH, RVH planned to conduct a clinical trial involving 80 patients. This trial aimed to determine the capabilities of virtual reality digital therapeutics.

"Up until now, VR technology has been expensive, bulky, difficult to use and operationalize within a healthcare environment. Today, we can deliver therapeutic VR interventions on lightweight, affordable and ergonomic headsets with therapeutic experiences that are more engaging than what has been possible in the past. This study will guide us towards validating the efficacy of our digital therapeutic in our effort to build the go-to distress management solution for hospitalized patients," said Rocket VR Health Co-founder and CEO, Sid Desai, in the press release.