Lilly app targets depression
pharmafile | June 10, 2014 | News story | Medical Communications, Sales and Marketing | Android, depression, iphone, lilly, talking progress
Eli Lilly has launched a free mobile app for Android and iPhone handsets which aims to support patients who suffer from depression.
The manufacturer argues that ‘Talking Progress’ will help with what it believes is one of the biggest issues around the management of depression: poor communication between doctor and patient leading to worse quality treatment and outcomes.
Lilly suggests that limited time for appointments makes managing depression in an outpatient setting difficult.
Reported incidence of depression is rising in the UK and Lilly says one in four people will experience mental health problems, although only a quarter of them will receive effective treatment.
The new app is designed to be dual-purpose: in the first instance, it will encourage conversation between the health professional and sufferer by encouraging the patient to ask questions such as ‘how will talking therapies help me to recover?’ and ‘why do I feel depressed?’
Secondly, it will be used as an interactive tool which allows patients to write a ‘mood diary’, which can be viewed as a chart so people can see changes over time, and to make notes to prepare for a consultation.
A reminder function is also there to prompt patients take medication, if appropriate.
However, despite the emergence of the ePatient, the jury is out on the effectiveness of health-related apps aimed at consumers: a report last year said the ‘vast majority’ were of no real use whatsoever.
The IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics also found that most apps are virtually ignored too: over half of them have been downloaded fewer than 500 times – with only five apps accounting for 15% of all downloads in healthcare.
Lilly hopes that will not be the case with its own new venture, suggesting instead that Talking Progress “helps establish a good rapport between a patient and their doctor”, helping patients to understand and manage their illness.
“By taking advantage of the growing demand for innovative channels, we were able to create an interactive tool which allows patients to be active participants in their recovery through understanding their symptoms and improving communication with their healthcare professional,” says Lilly Medical spokesperson Alan Lenox Smith.
It includes background information about depression and a self-care section including practical tips on the importance of physical exercise and healthy eating – and doctors and patients can order printed material from Lilly to support their use of the app.
Adam Hill
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