June 28th, 2010 by 
I’ve always thought it would be really useful to have some sort of store where I could consolidate all of my health paraphernalia and monitor my weight, tracking steps etc, in a bid to maintain good health all year, rather than use the run-up to Wimbledon as a reminder to flex my forearms. Sadly I didn’t patent the idea because Microsoft has beaten me to it with a new platform called the ‘Microsoft®HealthVault™’. Set up in partnership with Nuffield Health, HealthVault is not just about getting fit and looking good, but more about taking responsibility for your wellness (for free).
So who, apart from me, is likely to make the most of this new repository?
Well, the Edelman Health Engagement Barometer study shows that a growing number of the UK population take an active interest in their wellbeing – from walking the dog, to looking after their diet, blood pressure and so on; they’re interested in checking their vital signs and overall health and they’re not all sports fanatics but ordinary people. It’s a relatively low 13% but it’s a start.
The way I see it HealthVault will enable me to make a conscientious effort to time manage my health programme: Get back from the doc/gym/receive blood results etc and immediately load any relevant information onto the PC. Instead of faffing around in my hectic home-filing system looking for requested information, I know it will be in one place : HealthVault.
And in this digital age we can pick up any number of health-related gizmos in the local chemist: precision monitors, thermometers and scales, many of which you will soon be able to plug in; you can utilise a myriad of health-related applications from your mobile phone or computer; all that and health-related articles. I need to sit down!
For me, the safety and privacy of my personal data is paramount. The Microsoft HealthVault platform has this covered and we are assured that standards are based on Microsoft’s secure cloud infrastructure. Basically, the contract we enter into with Microsoft is that they will do whatever we ask them to do with our data with records being safely held within the UK; I like the ethos behind HealthVault, which empowers me to hold, edit and control my own data from a range of different sources outside of government-held medical data.
In my opinion we still find it all too easy to take a back seat with health issues and leave it up to the professionals, but they’re so stretched. In the long-term it could give the NHS the chance to do its job and work on getting people better while we work on our own illness prevention, which can’t be a bad thing.
I feel like I’ve had a bit of an epiphany, like when I was trying out the serums (and still loving them!), and I’m not the only one to think it’s a good idea.
Only last year the now Prime Minister David Cameron revealed plans to ‘move the UK’s health records into the cloud’ through Google or Microsoft, rather than Labour’s suggested central computer.
HealthVault is not to be confused with the NHS HealthSpace, which is based on the provision of a Summary Care Record. Here the medical data is owned and controlled by the NHS.
Google Health is a possible contender but, although similar, this application doesn’t seem to offer the same wealth of healthcare experience, in Britain.
You can set up individual plans like step-tracking plans, slimming/diet plans at individual fitness websites; even Kellogg’s Special K offers a selection of plans which can be tailored to suit your needs but there isn’t a competitor for all-encompassing health management.
I am trying to gain weight after being sapped to the marrow by my two small boys – I will use this tool to help me manage this. Tracking our wellbeing on a regular basis is a way to see clearly how our lifestyles are affecting our lives.
As a mother and partner of a man with very high cholesterol this is a great tool. We need to keep a firm hand on our wellbeing. If my health provider is willing to give me my health records, why would I opt not to have a copy in my own personal file?
And I welcome the services available from medical practitioners to personal trainers. I also welcome simplistic ways of understanding acronyms like BMI (Body Mass Index) – what it means and what it means to me.
What about you? Do you think you would use the HealthVault? Are you already using “the cloud” you keep an eye on your health?
