In a new report, The Role of Health Technology in Michigan, the Michigan Health Endowment Fund is providing insights and lessons learned from their work funding 46 technology projects from 2015 to 2019.

The report shares that while technology provides new opportunities for exchanging health information and delivering care more effectively and efficiently, there are barriers. Researchers say there’s a 17-year gap from discovery of innovative practices to implementation.

The report calls for policymakers, health entities and funders to understand the challenges at play and support the integration of technology-based approaches to health.

The Health Fund says it has found that mobile technology and approaches to health information and storage are two spaces that are well-positioned for further integration.

The Health Fund provides examples of this work in health technology, a few examples include:

• Double Up Food Bucks: A Health Fund grant helped the Fair Food Network expand Double Up Food Bucks electronic payment technology in grocery stores and farmers markets in five regions across the state. The program provides dollar for dollar matches on SNAP dollars to give recipients better access to healthy, fresh produce at farmers markets and grocery stores in Michigan and around the U.S. The newer technology allows Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) users to earn Double Up Food Bucks at one location and redeem them at another, increasing their purchasing power. Following the launch of the technology the program is now reaching 40 percent of SNAP households in Flint, up from 9 percent prior to the launch.

• Better Behavioral Health Care for Students: A program has implemented telemedicine in 10 schools throughout rural Southeast Michigan, connecting students with behavioral health staff through remote consultations. During the grant period 308 students received services for undiagnosed attention deficit disorders, depressive disorders and anxiety.

• Virtual Care for Veterans: A home-based transitional telecare project is helping recently discharged older veterans address medication issues, avoid in-home risks and more through telehealth-enabled tablets and wearable sensors.

The Health Fund's analysis of the 46 projects led to four lessons learned from technology-based programs.

Key findings:

• Technology-based interventions aren’t a cure-all. The most successful interventions were not as intricate or cutting-edge as they were adaptable, enabling them to address complex problems.

• Technology can be a game-changer when applied strategically. Simple models for incorporating new technology can be the most effective for addressing complex challenges, especially in the short term.

• Understanding dynamics between involved stakeholders is crucial. The Health Fund found that small clinics and organizations tended to be quicker adopters of new tools, stating: “Awareness of a given intervention’s timeline relative to the dynamics between involved stakeholders is arguably as important as the tools being implemented.”

• Technology-based approaches address a wide variety of barriers to access. “Whether streamlining patient data exchange between disparate caregiving entities, allowing patients to consult with a provider face-to-face using their computer, or connecting individuals with existing resources in their communities, almost every application of technology narrows access gaps in some way.”

The Health Fund shares that its diverse investments in health technology across the state have provided these lessons and more, especially what’s needed in the future to move this work forward.

“Whether through national policies streamlining how patient data is exchanged, or in achieving buy-in from community members for a new mobile application, there are many steps between developing a technology-based intervention and realizing health improvements. To speed up the process, funders and health entities alike must take calculated risks and be willing to try innovative ideas,” the report states.

Want more?

Read the full report.

Connect with the CMF Health Funders Affinity Group.