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Singapore: Could the future of managing mental health lie in codes and predictive models?
Behavioral health technology provider Holmsk has partnered with authorities in Singapore to develop a suite of digital tools for hospitals and clinics.
One solution the company is looking to introduce is a “smart pill” to track when patients forget or skip their medication.
How that works is with a small, grain-sized biosensor embedded in the pill and an adhesive that can be applied to the patient’s body to detect when the pill has been ingested. The technology has been adopted in the United States.
“Let’s say schizophrenia, some psychotic patients with depression – not taking the pill for a few days can be enough to drive them off the cliff. And if you know that you have stopped taking the pill for two days in a row, you can intervene. You can catch them earlier,” Joydeep Sarkar, Holmsk chief analytics officer, told CNA.
He described the sensor as a “fantastic solution” that works with other pieces of the puzzle – making sure the data is entered into the patient’s clinical records, pointing out missed doses and making sure any necessary interventions are part of the workflow.
The company has developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model to analyze data for “notes-based” mental health treatment or therapy.
This will allow researchers to better understand the effectiveness of treatments and the development of diseases in the future.
Predicting risks for mental health disorders
Data in areas such as medicine and therapy can be fed into predictive models to understand the risks surrounding each patient.
“A big part of where artificial intelligence comes into play is with more complex patients – when the answer is not clear,” Mr Sarkar said.
“Let’s say you go in and calm them down and put them in the hospital. When does it become a problem to let them go… What kind of support systems can really work to keep the patient from getting worse?”
One disease his company is looking to highlight is bipolar disorder, which has a large genetic component.
The aim is to tap data to identify those at risk and catch symptoms early to prevent the disease.
“I call them low-hanging fruit because you don’t need much,[you]just need to connect the data,” Mr. Sarkar said.
Teaching people to help themselves
Other industry players are looking to get into artificial intelligence to help people take care of their own mental health.
Among them is Intellect, a mental health platform that has attracted 3 million users worldwide since its launch in 2020.
“Mental health remains a strong demand across Asia, globally. This is incomplete with support. We have seen a significant increase in customer service in two years,” said Theodoric Chew, CEO of Intellect.
Intellect uses data such as user-reported sentiment and usage patterns to recommend apps to users. It also uses algorithms to match individuals with therapists based on their interests and specialties.
The app counts 24-year-old Charis Liang among its users. The undergraduate, who previously worked as an intern at the company, takes to the app when she’s stressed and needs help.
“You can’t call your therapist at 3 o’clock in the morning, but you can do this,” she said. Ms. Liang said the exercises on the app are based on cognitive behavioral therapy, similar to what she went through during traditional therapy. More ease of ordering.
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