SINGAPORE: SingHealth and Singapore General Hospital (SGH) have launched a new mobile phone application to help patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis better monitor their condition.
Singapore's first smartphone health diary application for rheumatoid arthritis aims to empower patients by encouraging them to play a more active role.
When 37-year-old Randall Tan was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis in 2004, he had difficulty keeping track of his condition. The former actor said he was unable to give proper updates to his doctor.
Now, with the smartphone application, he can fill in a simple questionnaire which tracks his daily activities, level of pain, and general health.
"He will ask how was it, did you have any pain, were the joints swollen. Certain things I couldn't remember, and I'm lazy, and I don't usually use a diary to take down stuff, but I have my IPhone with me all the time. So ever since this app came about, it helps me to track the times when my joints actually swell."
The health diary application will then calculate the severity of their condition.
The results will supplement doctors' assessment of patients and help them to effectively manage the patient's condition.
Associate Professor Julian Thumboo, Head of Rheumatology and Immunology Department at SGH, said: "The application also allows patients to enter any comments or questions that they have for their doctors. So it actually helps to give patients a good sense of their condition, tracks it over time, and so that hopefully will empower patients to have better understanding of their condition and improve their outcome."
Dr Chong Yoke Sin, CEO of Integrated Health Information Systems said Singaporeans are becoming increasingly connected and there is an increasing trend towards the adoption of smartphones.
She added that the applications are not just for the savvy younger generation.
Dr Chong said: "The older people can actually have their caregivers key in for them or use their handphones for them to actually manage their health better. So I don't think it should just be confined to the patients themselves, but also the patients' caregivers."
SGH said about 45,000 people in Singapore suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, a chronic disease that requires long-term care and monitoring.
SingHealth said such mobile phone technology can help to improve patient outcomes while reducing unnecessary hospitalisation and healthcare costs.
It added that it is looking to create more health diary applications for other chronic diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure and renal disease.
