Tag: innovation

Help manage your IBD in the palm of your hand: Oshi Health launches first all-in-one mobile app

Leave a comment

Managing inflammatory bowel disease is no small feat. Whether it’s determining which foods and drinks are your triggers, tracking your fatigue, staying on top of medications, keeping all your doctor’s appointments in order…the list goes on, and it’s a lot. Oftentimes as patients, we have so much to juggle in our everyday life that we can lose sight of when our bodies give us signals that a flare up is on the horizon. It’s can be easy to hide behind a smile and ignore symptoms. Your normal is different than the average persons. Your pain tolerance, perspective and the way you experience life are unique. Most people don’t have to put so much thought into meal time and think of bathroom breaks as a stress.

This is where Oshi Health’s new mobile app comes in. Logo with DARK letters OSHI HEALTHThe app features tracking, curated learning, and expert Q&A. Click here to watch a short YouTube video about all the app has to offer.

As a blogger and patient advocate, I’m thrilled to be one of the contributing writers featured on the app.  You’ll find new articles from me pertaining to dealing with the diagnosis, friendships, relationships and motherhood with IBD. The exclusive content features real-life s  buccess stories, easy-to-understand information on emerging treatments, and delicious IBD-friendly recipes.

Keeping track of daily factors—such as sleep, diet and exercise, along with symptoms can help us better understand the causes of our flare-ups and how to best achieve remission.

The all-in-one app’s features include:

  • Fresh Content: Daily doses of inspiration and information
  • Tracking: Short-term and long-term trends including well-being and symptom scores
  • Integration: Compatibility with leading fitness devices, sensors, and wearables
  • Reminders: Helpful notifications to stay on track with IBD wellness
  • Surveys: Bi-weekly progress checkpoints
  • Expert Q&A: Professional feedback from gastroenterologists and medical professionals
  • Security: Best-In-Class data privacy with state-of-the-art encryption

“Oshi is a free mobile app that empowers individual control and understanding of IBD wellness. DanWeinsteinOshiHealthOshi has the potential to significantly improve lives with smart tools to manage and control Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis,” said Daniel Weinstein, CEO, Oshi Health, Inc. “Oshi’s easy-to-use, best-in-class tracking and insights tool will allow patients to work with their physicians to uncover hidden patterns to figure out what triggers flares for their unique bodies.”

The app’s “Ask the Experts” feature further supports your digital experience as a patient or a caregiver. A team of gastroenterologists and health professionals will provide moderated feedback on key questions. You can find answers to your questions right at your finger tips from sources you can trust.

As someone who has battled Crohn’s disease for 13 years, I’m excited an app like this is on the market. I wish I had a tool like Oshi when I was initially diagnosed. A tool that recognizes my needs and concerns. A tool that empowers me to be my own best advocate and stay on top of symptoms. This app is great to have in your back pocket as you attend doctor appointments. You can look at all your information you’ve tracked and be able to communicate clearly what your needs are and where your concerns are. We now have the power to advance our own health care and give our gastroenterologists a clear look at the back story of our day-to-day lives. It’s easy to use, intuitive design, makes managing IBD feel like much less of a chore.

OSHI is now available for download on the Apple App Store or Android Google Play.

Apple iOS: https://bit.ly/Oshi_iOS

Android: https://bit.ly/Oshi_Android

Click here for more information about Oshi Health.

 

APPLY NOW: Lyfebulb & UnitedHealth Group launch first-ever Innovation Challenge in IBD

Leave a comment

As patients, we have power. We have the ability to use our experiences to shed light on the constant uphill battles we face in all facets of life as we take on inflammatory bowel disease. LyfebulbXUnitedHG Summit&Award YellowWe have the opportunity to serve as patient advocates and leaders in our respective health communities and be a voice for those who suffer in silence. As advocates, we can share the challenges and the triumphs. We can articulate where the roadblocks are, where we struggle and come up with lifechanging solutions—not only for ourselves, but countless others.

This is where Lyfebulb and United Health Group come in. They recently launched the first-ever Innovation Challenge for Inflammatory Bowel Disease. The Challenge will recognize and award top patient entrepreneurs developing innovative ideas for better management of IBD using healthcare information technology, medical devices, consumer products or services. Get this—the top three winners receive $25,000, $15,000 and $10,000 respectively!

I had a chance to chat with Lyfebulb’s, CEO and Founder, Karin Hehenberger, M.D., Ph.D. about the Innovation Challenge for IBD. Karin says, her main mission is, “to reduce the burden of IBD, by accelerating the pace and adoption of innovation in the disease state, while raising awareness for the conditions.” Karin Standing -2

Karin is a chronic illness patient and advocate herself. Quite simply—she gets it. She lived with Type 1 Diabetes for nearly 20 years before she decided to share her story. Complications of her diabetes led her to need a kidney and pancreas transplant. Through these challenging life experiences, she found her passion for making a difference.

“My intense personal experiences enabled me to realize key insights. I started thinking about how many daily issues I had lived with as a person with T1D and came to the realization about how my own patient journey and professional expertise, could help drive research and innovation.”

In years past, Lyfebulb has held these types of challenges for diabetes and cancer. Past winners invented everything from a clever solution to ensure injected insulin was still potent and had not gone bad due to storage issues to creating a natural and better bone replacement device for those battling cancer who have experienced bone deterioration.

Much like those diseases, IBD impacts all areas of life. Karin believes there is still much we can do in the IBD space when it comes to awareness and education. It’s her hope this Innovation Challenge for IBD will help raise the level of attention on the complexities and challenges facing those of us in the patient community.

How to apply

You are eligible if:

  • You work on innovative ideas and concepts for better care and management of IBD using healthcare information technology, medical devices, consumer products or services; and
  • You, or a family member of loved one, live with IBD; and
  • Your idea is something other than a pharmaceutical or diagnostic innovation.

Click here to apply. The deadline to apply is Thursday, June 7 at 11:59 P.M. ET.

Judging criteria

Lyfebulb and UnitedHealth Group will gather all submissions and will review them for eligibility.

The judging panel will look for evidence in the following categories:

  • Patient Entrepreneur story
  • Degree of innovation
  • Impact on patient needs
  • Feasibility of development and implementation

Lyfebulb_April_2018_rb_0172lyfebulb_april_2018_rb_0172From the submissions, 10 finalists are selected to present at the Innovation Challenge in late July. All finalists are flown to the summit in Minnetonka, Minnesota and treated to two days of interactions with other finalists, the jury and with Lyfebulb and UnitedHealth Group employees during one on one meetings, group meetings, presentations and meal gatherings.

If you are chosen to attend the Innovation Challenge summit, you will pitch your idea in front of the jury and audience composed of Lyfebulb, UnitedHealth Group members and invited guests. Best of luck to all the applicants. As a Crohn’s patient of nearly 13 years—thank you for going above and beyond to make a difference in the lives of others!