The digital health industry has seen explosive growth in recent years, with countless apps, wearables, and software platforms emerging to help improve health outcomes. Today, there are more than 350,000 healthcare apps available on the global market — and counting.
However, a key challenge for many digital health companies is validation for their solutions or providing solid evidence that their solutions truly work as intended. In fact, one analysis of the 20 digital health companies with the most funding in 2017 found these companies had not yet “demonstrated substantial impact on disease burden or cost in the US health care system.”
Third-party, objective validation from respected bodies can give digital health solutions the credibility they need to drive adoption. One organization providing this type of authoritative validation is the Validation Institute.
At Advanta Health, our mission is to build technology that truly improves health outcomes. We recognize that in the crowded digital health space, employers and healthcare payers are rightfully skeptical about unproven solutions. They need to know that a platform not only shows potential in small pilots but can drive meaningful impact at scale.
That’s why we are thrilled to announce receiving Validation Institute’s Outcomes Validation. This prestigious third-party certification offers credible proof that our ActiveFit platform achieves best-in-class user engagement.
The Struggle to Prove Effectiveness
In the exciting rush to create innovative health technologies, thorough validation often gets overlooked. Companies understandably want to get to market quickly, so they focus on building a minimally viable product. Conducting rigorous studies to prove clinical efficacy or cost-effectiveness takes significant time and resources. But without evidence that a digital health solution actually improves health metrics or reduces costs, potential buyers have a hard time justifying widespread use. One analysis found that among hundreds of diabetes mobile apps, only a tiny fraction had any studies supporting meaningful clinical improvement, and none were considered high-quality evidence.
Without proof that a product improves health metrics or reduces costs, it’s hard for consumers and employers to justify large-scale purchases. They need confidence that a solution not only works in small pilots but delivers a significant impact when rolled out more broadly. Lacking this validation, the adoption of digital health tools has fallen short of expectations.
At Advanta Health, we recognize that healthcare payers and employers demand proof that a solution delivers superior health outcomes before committing significant resources. While eager to accelerate innovation, we know the importance of building trust through evidence. We continue investing in gold-standard studies to demonstrate the real-world efficacy of our digital health technologies.
The Growing Importance of Third-Party Validators
To bridge this gap, independent organizations focused on healthcare validation plays a crucial role. Third-party validators like the Validation Institute provide a stamp of approval purchasers can trust by objectively evaluating digital health solutions and certifying those that meet strict standards.
As early adopters of validation, we at Advanta Health understand the value of this stamp of approval. We actively pursue third-party certification across our portfolio, to provide payers and employers trusted assurance of our solutions’ impact.
Here’s what the Validation Institute’s process involves:
- Objective Evaluation: A deep dive into digital health solutions to determine which ones truly align with the industry’s stringent standards.
- Certification: Those that pass the rigorous evaluation are certified, offering a clear signpost for purchasers looking for trustworthy solutions.
- Peer-Reviewed Process: This combines a blend of analytics to evaluate the data and performance metrics behind a solution, expert reviews from professionals in the field, and outcome studies that review the real-world impact and benefits of the technology.
The Validation Institute ensures an unbiased viewpoint by adhering to this comprehensive assessment process. This, in turn, offers assurance to payers and employers that a validated digital health solution isn’t just a shiny new tool but a genuinely effective investment.
A Leader in Driving Health Engagement
A digital health company recently certified by the Validation Institute is Advanta Health. Advanta’s ActiveFit platform helps employers improve workforce well-being through personalized health challenges, incentives, and data insights.
The Validation Institute certified that ActiveFit achieves best-in-class user engagement, with 65% of enrolled members actively participating and 181 health interactions per user annually. This level of engagement is a key driver of improved health behaviors and outcomes. The Institute also endorsed ActiveFit’s positive impact based on financial guarantees behind the validation.
Validation for Digital Health Solutions is the Future
At Advanta, we strongly believe in the importance of third-party validation. We went to great lengths to have the Validation Institute thoroughly evaluate ActiveFit because we recognize that in today’s digital health landscape, claims about potential impact are not enough. Demonstrating real evidence of efficacy and engagement is crucial for driving adoption of our solutions. Our Validation Institute certification provides the concrete proof today’s employers and healthcare payers demand before investing in a health technology platform. We are proud this extensive external evaluation confirms that ActiveFit delivers industry-leading member engagement. Validation gives our partners confidence that partnering with Advanta Health will allow them to meaningfully improve health outcomes.