It’s easy for patients to download a health and wellness app to their smartphone or tablet, but selecting one that will improve their overall health and wellbeing requires some assistance.
The pharmacists and pharmacy techs at your independent community pharmacy can provide patients with the guidance and information they need to select an app that will positively influence their health.
Think of it as a beneficial add-on to the counseling you currently provide. As more patients use apps as a part of their daily health routines, this type of counseling is becoming more important. You’ll also set your pharmacy apart from the competition.
In January 2014, about 46 million people in the U.S., or about one-third of U.S. smartphone users, used a fitness and health app, according to a report from Nielsen, a research company that tracks consumer trends. The report also found that the average user accessed a fitness or health app 16 times per month, and spent more than an hour using them.
Help patients select an app that will aid them in reaching their individual health goals.
Here are six common health goals, and suggestions of free, commonly downloaded apps that can help patients achieve these goals.
Goal: Lose weight and eat healthier
Making better food choices and losing weight is a top priority for many patients, and several apps can help them achieve these goals.
The Calorie Counter & Diet Tracker app allows users to log and track their diet and exercise information. The app’s food database contains more than 5,000,000 foods, so patients can accurately track their calorie intake.
Lose It! is an app that features similar functions, and it includes a customized weight loss plan for users.
Consider recommending these apps to patients who are looking to lose weight, or trying to be more mindful about what they eat. These apps can be especially beneficial to a patient newly diagnosed with diabetes, as it can help patients track and balance the foods they’re eating with their exercise routines.
Goal: Exercise more
Less than 5 percent of adults are physically active for 30 minutes each day, according to the Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion. It’s likely that many of your patients could benefit from an app that encourages them to get active.
Several apps devoted to exercise, particularly running, are among the most downloaded apps from iTunes.
Fitbit is the most commonly downloaded app devoted to exercise, and the third most downloaded health and fitness app. It allows users to track their activity with or without the Fitbit activity tracker, and they can also record their eating habits and compete with friends to achieve goals.
The next three most-downloaded exercise apps all focus on running, and include:
- Nike+ Running: This app helps users track their training and compare race times and distances. It also gives users guidance and training to help them build endurance and reach their goals.
- Runkeeper: This app uses GPS to track users’ runs, walks or bike rides to give them information about their pace, distance traveled, calories burned and more.
- Map My Run: Using GPS technology, this app tracks users’ activities and calculates how many calories they’ve burned. It also alerts users when it’s time to replace workout gear, such as running shoes, to help them avoid injuries.
Consider recommending these apps as a part of your pharmacy’s wellness program. Be sure to let patients know that they don’t necessarily need a fitness tracker to use these apps. Also, consider offering a tutorial about how to get the most out of these apps at your pharmacy’s next event.
Goal: Learn more health information
Access to quality health information can help patients understand their health conditions and make more informed decisions.
The free WebMD app empowers patients to make informed health decisions by giving users easy access to health information through their smartphones. The app features physician-reviewed health content and the Healthy Target tool, which helps users create and sustain healthy habits.
Consider recommending this app to patients with young kids or patients who are newly diagnosed with a disease. The information center can give parents a trusted reference for dealing with minor childhood illnesses, while patients who are struggling to understand a new diagnosis will be able to educate themselves about their health challenges.
And, the Healthy Target tool can help a patient who has just been diagnosed with high blood pressure develop healthy eating or exercising habits.
Goal: Sleep better
Roughly 60 million Americans suffer from sleep disorders, according to NPR. When patients turn to your pharmacy for natural and prescription sleep remedies, suggest these apps, too.
The White Noise Free Sleep Sounds app helps users block out distractions while sleeping with more than 40 free soothing, white noises that reduce stress, mask tinnitus and soothe headaches.
The Sleep Pillow Sounds app features 70 natural sounds to help users sleep even in noisy environments. The app can also run while the screen is dark and it can fade out with a sleep timer so it won’t run down a user’s smartphone battery.
Consider recommending these apps as a supplemental aid to patients filling a prescription to help with sleeplessness, and be sure to suggest these apps to patients who want a more natural solution to help them sleep.
Goal: Quit smoking
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 68.9 percent of adult cigarette smokers want to stop smoking. Help patient achieve this wellness goal by suggesting smoking cessation apps to help.
Smoke Free and Quit It Lite are both popular smoking cessation apps that help users track how long they’ve been smoke free, how much money they’ve saved, how many cigarettes they’ve avoided and how their health has improved.
Incorporate these apps into your pharmacy’s smoking cessation program to help keep patients involved between sessions. Also, be sure to recommend these apps to patients interested in quitting smoking, even if they don’t have time to attend your seminars.
Goal: Drink more water
If patients want to drink more water every day, recommend apps that can help.
The Waterlogged app helps patients track their daily water consumption and the app alerts users to drink more water. This app keeps track of how much water a patient drinks through photos of the user’s favorite drinking containers. Users can also view how their consumption changes over time.
Consider recommending this app to patients who are dieting or who are trying to lose weight, and remind them about the importance of staying hydrated. Patients who are interested in healthier, younger looking skin would also benefit from using this app.
Recommending apps that help patients achieve their health and wellness goals will boost loyalty to your pharmacy, and improve your pharmacy’s credibility.
