Understanding “Precise Health”
Our Vision
Welcome to precise health…
Where digital health innovation meets interdisciplinary expertise. At Precise Health, we are pioneering digital health and virtual care products that prioritize citizen and patient needs while supporting decision-makers to transform health systems. We believe that the way forward in the evolving landscape of digital health is to champion patient-centered societal solutions that enable health equity.
About Precise Health
Precise Health was founded by Dr. Tarun Katapally, Canada Research Chair in Digital Health for Equity to advance digital health innovation. We invite you to join us on this journey toward a future where healthcare is not only cutting-edge but also equitable. Together, we are pioneering digital health solutions that make a difference in the lives of individuals and communities, ensuring that everyone has equal access to quality healthcare.
One-Stop Shop for Digital Solutions
Precise Health leverages a cutting-edge research and development environment for interdisciplinary expertise, swift prototyping, and agile development – a one-stop shop for digital solutions.
Global Implementation of Digital Solutions
We understand the importance of implementing digital solutions globally. Precise Health develops digital products, valuing real-world environments through our partnerships across international jurisdictions.
APPLYING THE CONCEPT OF INVERTING SOCIAL INNOVATION
What if there was a way to empower people to access and engage with healthcare, when and where they want it?
Using digital platforms, ethically-leveraged citizen-based data from these devices can transform health systems to:
1) Predict and prevent global health crises;
2) Respond rapidly to emerging crises by providing citizens with real-time support.
Our Approach
Our approach integrates the innovative research of the DEPtH lab and the SMART Platform design where we combine digital citizen science and community-based participatory research to foster equitable and inclusive global and local digital partnerships.
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We believe in the power of collective intelligence. The Smart Platform promotes collaborative design, fostering synergy between diverse perspectives from citizens to researchers and decision-makers to stakeholders to create solutions that truly meet the needs of our partners and clients.
Key approaches:
Integrating citizen science + community-based participatory research
Prioritizing social innovation over corporate profits
Incorporating user personalization in all our products
Equity in design to ensure uptake irrespective of digital literacy
Inclusion and diversity in our co-design with community partners
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Grounded in robust scientific research, the Smart Platform ensures that digital solutions are informed by the latest interdisciplinary and trans-sectoral insights, providing a solid foundation for social innovation.
Key approaches:
Interdisciplinary expertise integrating computer science+datascience+digital epidemiology
Decentralization of technology and democratization of data
Variety of platforms ranging from traditional digital platforms to progressive web applications
Pioneering data sovereignty of citizens by going above and beyond jurisdictional data legislations
Building digital platforms that drive systems integration (e.g., health, education, social services) for societal solutions
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The Smart Platform integrates citizen science with community-based participatory research, an approach that enables us to test digital platform functionality and effectiveness in-house by engaging with key stakeholders and a citizen scientist advisory council.
Key approaches:
Robust testing and piloting protocols that enable cross-sectional and longitudinal designs
Effective real-time data collection that enables our development and research teams to respond rapidly to stakeholder feedback
Conduct multiple iterations of testing to ensure comprehensive feedback is incorporated before beta-testing
Conduct beta-testing that allows real-world input before implementation
Incorporate human-centred approaches in adapting artificial intelligence
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The Smart Platform enables trans-sectoral implementation of digital platforms across jurisdictions with the flexibility of using study designs ranging from randomized controlled trials and quasi-experimental studies to longitudinal community trials and innovative step-wedge digital interventions.
Key approaches:
Rapid responses that provide real-time support to citizens across jurisdictions
Utilization of big data for jurisdictional evidence-based decision-making
Advanced data analytics that integrate cutting-edge cloud computing with within-jurisdiction storage of data
Capacity building by providing training to users and clients across jurisdictionsi
Offer ongoing support channels to address user and client inquiries and issues.
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Beyond development, the Smart Platform incorporates process and impact evaluation approaches, ensuring that our digital solutions not only function effectively, but also are accountable to our stakeholders.
Key approaches:
Pioneering digital evaluation by incorporating principles and approaches of program and policy evaluation implement analytics tools to track user engagement, feature usage, and overall platform performance.
Use quantitative and qualitative big data to measure success against predefined goals.
Creating continuous improvement pathways to seamlessly update our products using empirical evidence.
Conduct digital evaluation in-house during piloting of products before real-world launches.
Incorporate advanced data analytics into digital evaluation approaches to provide clients with valuable user information.
Our values
Bridging the Gap: Interdisciplinary Innovation
Pioneering Digital Solutions
At Precise Health, we are trailblazers in creating digital health platforms that tackle pressing population health crises. Our work extends beyond the typical boundaries of healthcare, integrating citizen science and data science to redefine the way we approach healthcare delivery. By involving the community in the research process, we empower individuals to take an active role in their health. At the same time, data science provides the tools to make sense of complex health data, leading to more informed decisions and improved outcomes.
A Commitment to Social Innovation
Dr. Katapally works closely with interdisciplinary researchers, intersectoral decision-makers, and disadvantaged communities. This collaborative approach is central to his work, allowing him to engineer digital health solutions that harness the potential of big data. By integrating diverse perspectives and expertise, he creates digital health platforms that tackle population health crises head-on.
We are unwavering in our commitment to advancing internet equity, ensuring that digital health is accessible to all, and championing the appropriate and ethical use of data. Our core values drive us to create solutions that are not only innovative, but also inclusive and ethical.
Development Evaluation: The Heart of our Innovation
One of our key achievements at Precise Health has been the adoption of a developmental evaluation process, which has proven invaluable in shaping our projects. By assessing the digital health platform development process and conducting internal pilot testing, we have not only fine-tuned our approach, but also contributed valuable methods that can be applied to similar development protocols in the field of digital health.
Team Synergy
Our developmental evaluation has encouraged closer collaboration between our research and development teams, allowing us to streamline our efforts and ensure a cohesive approach to our projects.
Interdisciplinary Approach
To drive true innovation, we have provided health system training to our computer programmers, fostering interdisciplinarity within our research process.
Agile Development
Our development sprint processes have evolved, leading to shorter sprints with frequent internal evaluations, resulting in quicker progress and more responsive solutions.