The Health devices are the next big thing in the Internet of Things.

This will not be temporary. They will be instrumented, interconnected and intelligent.

Prevention and therapeutic care will be enabled by automatic data collection.

The device will be interconnected.

Think about the potential of sharing your health data with a community to help research. Don’t you do it already when you use Social Networking services such as Waze. I know, you are thinking that sharing your position on Waze and your health condition are really different.

Some communities are already sharing health related information: for example cyclist sharing their laps time, heart bit – well yes, but this is more sport networking that Health social networking.

Now, think that it is anonymous, think that it will help accelerate medical research. Think that it will also save you money. And when I say, it will, it is actually already possible. In the UK, the private insurance company Pruhealth  is already rewarding their customers using connected health devices.

 PruHealth members with Vitality can track their activity while earning Vitality points for their workouts. You can use a wide range of fitness devices and mobile apps including their own free Vitality Active app. And you get cash back for being active. Bottom line, you are healthier and save money.

In addition, you will be able to decide how, where and with who you want to share your health data, for example caregivers, health professionals.

The health device will be intelligent, deriving insights and recommendations , and comparing your data with your target or risk levels, sending alerts when needed.

For 50% of the  health device users,  the motivation is driven by an existing health condition. This will change for prevention, and encourage physical activity.

The question is: who will win the ecosystem battle. Will the health care providers  come together to set a standard, share needs, and make economy of scale, or will the market fight hard and will see the standard emerging. No one wants to invest in the next Betamax and finally see VHS winning. Would you?

If you want to go further, I recommend you this good paper from IBM “The future of connected health devices: Liberating the Information Seeker.”