Podcast

556: MyTherapy, The Pill Reminder and Medication Tracker App

The latest app sitting at the top of the charts on app stores is often a gimmicky, fun trend that we delete within six months of downloading it; but the MyTherapy app from Smart Patient is one worth keeping. With technology modernizing and finding new ways of approaching daily life, MyTherapy is doing the same for medication.

Wherever you in the world you listen to this tech podcast, I will guarantee that many of you will have excellent health and are guilty of probably taking it for granted. Equally, you might have an illness that requires regular medication or cares for a family member. Many people are taking medication every day but many others have no comprehension of how complex and confusing this can be.

Non-adherence to medication is one of the largest issues facing healthcare systems, in the UK and throughout the developed world. The costs are both human and financial. Only 50% of medication plans are adhered to in developed countries. A Birmingham based study estimated that annual cost of non-adherence to the NHS at £500 million.

Nearly 200,000 deaths a year in the EU are due to missed medication. The MyTherapy app is attempting to solve these problems, providing a comprehensive tool to manage medication. It’s a medication reminder, but with a variety of useful functions: a symptom tracker, an option to share progress and it notifies the user if their medication is running out.

With hundreds of thousands of patients using the app to take their medication safely and responsibly, I wanted to find out more about the story behind MyTherapy and how adherence and persistence are about much more than reminders as we head towards a more proactive approach to healthcare than reactive. I invited Sebastian Gaede onto this tech podcast who shares his story and how the MyTherapy app is making a big difference.

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