Is Consumer Wearable Data Consumable in Healthcare?

Fitness trackers are ubiquitous

From Fitbit and Garmin to Apple Watch, Samsung Galaxy, Whoop, Coros, Oura Ring, and more, an estimated more than one in five Americans wears a fitness tracker today. These devices measure everything from our daily step counts to our heart rate variability (HRV) and even track our quality of sleep. But when it comes to making an impact on our overall health, what can providers do with all of this data we’re collecting?

In a wide-ranging and insightful conversation, our CEO, Dan D’Orazio spoke with Cardiac Electrophysiologist, Dr. Kenneth Civello, MPH, to explore the myriad—and emerging—ways in which consumer wearables are transforming healthcare delivery.

Watch the full interview below and read on for our five most insightful takeaways:

Wearables as Clinical Tools, Not Toys

Since Fitbit released its first clip-on tracker in 2009, and Apple followed six years later with its first watch, wearables have been in a near constant state of evolution. These devices are no longer just fitness gadgets, but are increasingly useful for detecting cardiac conditions, such as atrial fibrillation, or for continuously monitoring overall health metrics in real-time. The newly announced Samsung Galaxy Watch8 offers unique and personalized insights and health coaching to help users build healthier habits. Other new models, like the KardiaMobile EKG, extend wearables’ usability from lifestyle accessories to credible clinical tools. As Dr. Civello puts it: “They’re not just toys—they’re tools.”

Signal vs. Noise: The Challenge of Data Integrity

With more wearables comes more health data; rather, a deluge of data, much of which varies in quality. This poses a challenge for academic researchers and practicing physicians alike, as Dr. Civello notes: the exponential increase in metrics to track and follow makes it difficult to distinguish signal from noise. As machine learning and AI evolve, these tools are likely to help improve data filtering, improving the usability of consumer wearable data, ensuring that clinicians receive actionable insights they can leverage in practice.

A Striking Paradox: Consumer-Collected, But Not Yet Consumable

Not lost on Dr. Civello is the striking irony that despite the wealth of data wearables collect, much of it remains “not consumable” by clinicians today. Workflow constraints, lack of data standardization, and limited training in reviewing and interpreting the data hinders its practical application. While there is so much promise and potential around these devices, this disconnect hampers the full potential of integrating wearables fully into clinical practice today.

Shift in Healthcare Power Dynamics

As healthcare becomes increasingly consumer-driven, wearables are further fueling this paradigm shift. As Dr. Civello notes: healthcare is no longer solely physician-directed. Patients now come armed with their own health data, expecting insight, collaboration, and application to their ongoing health plans. This new model forces clinicians to adapt—or risk becoming obsolete—accelerating the need for more patient-centric and tech-integrated healthcare models.

Collaborative Intelligence: Augmenting Care with AI

While all of this might seem threatening to providers, Dr. Civello cautions a more moderate read. Rather than fearing artificial intelligence, Civello champions “collaborative intelligence”: a model where AI enhances, rather than replaces, human clinical judgment. With the right tools and protocols in place, AI can help sift through large volumes of wearable data to help ensure the information can be applied in clinical settings, to ultimately guide better, faster, and more personalized care.

By the end of their conversation, Dr. Civello and D’Orazio are aligned: consumer wearables are here to stay, and it is up to us to figure out how to integrate this new type of powerful and promising information into clinical practice. The future of healthcare will be shaped not only by medical breakthroughs, but by how well we integrate, interpret, and act on the data already streaming in from consumers themselves. It’s up to us to make the most of it.