Transforming Health Through Digital Innovation
The Digital Health Initiative (DHI) aims to transform health and health care for patients, families, and their providers by cultivating a thriving research community of digital health pioneers.
The Digital Health Initiative (DHI) accelerates research and translate innovations into real-world clinical settings, ultimately enhancing the quality and value of care for countless patients. Dedicated to revolutionizing health and healthcare for patients and providers, DHI develops mobile apps and virtual reality applications that seamlessly integrate with electronic health records (EHRs) to enhance patient outcomes and health care delivery. The initiative leverages world-renowned expertise from the GApp Lab and ReImagine EHR in playful engagement, standards-based electronic health record interoperability, and participatory design.
IMPROVING CANCER DETECTION THROUGH COMPUTER ALGORITHMS
For many people with inherited cancer risk, the warning signs are already buried in their medical records. But too often, they never lead to genetic testing or prevention. University of Utah Health researchers Kensaku Kawamoto, MD, PhD, and Guilherme Del Fiol, MD, PhD, are working to close that gap with a digital health platform that scans electronic health records to identify patients with concerning cancer family history and uses chatbot (GARDE-Chat) to reach out to patients, educate about genetics, and offer genetic testing. Tested in a multi-site clinical trial, the innovative approach is extending patient care beyond the clinic and into patients' homes.
TREATING MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER (MDD) WITH VIDEO GAMES
What if a video game could help require the brain's response to depression? Sarah Shizuko Moriomoto, PsyD, and Roger Altizer, PhD, are testing that possibility through clinical trials of Neurogrow, a therapeutic video game designed for older adults with treatment-resistant major depressive disorder. Supported by a $7.5 million NIH grant, Neurogrow invites players to care for a virtual garden shaped by changing demands and conditions. The game is designed to target and strengthen circuits in the frontal lobe in older adults who suffer from MDD. Video games can be an innovative approach to target the neurobiology of a complex disease.
Latest News
INVEST IN THE FUTURE OF DIGITAL HEALTH RESEARCH
The Digital Health Initiative’s mission is to transform health and health care for patients, their families, and their health care teams by cultivating a thriving research community of digital healthcare pioneers. Your contribution increases the development of digital health innovations, and bolsters the success of current and prospective faculty members.