A digital health company envisions itself as the WordPress of patient engagement

A technology company that wants to change how patient engagement platforms are structured is making its digital health platform widely available to payers, self-employed insurers and specialist physician practices. Bill Van Wyck, the founder of Zillion, also serves as president and Chief Innovation Officer. In a phone interview, he talked about its first collaboration partner, UnitedHealth Group and the platform that powers the payer's weight-loss program, Real Appeal, launched in November last year.

In a phone interview with Van Wyck, he likened its open API-first approach to what WordPress has done for the arduous task of writing code for websites. It has sped up the process of setting up these programs and simplified it, Van Wyck said.

The company claims its software platform  can provide live, video conferencing software, content delivery, and interactive messaging. It can also support scheduling for health literacy content, alerts and reminders, workforce management, data analytics and goal tracking, according to a company statement.

Real Appeal includes a weekly interactive Internet video series, group discussions and live coaching. By Van Wyck's reckoning, it is available to more than 1.5 million users within UnitedHealth Group's network.

"Our video, scheduling, content analytics — it is all configurable."

Among the practices it is targeting include orthopedic and bariatric surgery and prenatal care, with programs changing as care needs evolve from pre-surgery prep to the procedure to recovery.

"You don't have to change the underlying platform if want to change the program," Van Wyck said. "It's useful for big customers. If they wanted to add smoking cessation, weight loss, and diabetes prevention programs, they can still use the same platform to deliver them. It's a turn-key product — it can be implemented fast and at a low-cost."

Van Wyck describes himself as an entrepreneur, not a developer. "My development team are the heroes behind our software. I help figure out ways technology can be used to improve the industry."

Zillion's approach of trying to provide a multitude of approaches to reach a diverse patient population and workforce. But it could also pose a challenge to smaller startups offering fewer program options. Ultimately, it will come down to the effectiveness of the solutions.

Source: A digital health company envisions itself as the WordPress of patient engagement