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This version of NSU News has been archived as of February 28, 2019. To search through archived articles, visit nova.edu/search. To access the new version of NSU News, visit news.nova.edu.
This version of SharkBytes has been archived as of February 28, 2019. To search through archived articles, visit nova.edu/search. To access the new version of SharkBytes, visit sharkbytes.nova.edu.
COP Research Fellow Wins International Microsoft Health App Challenge
Zaher Hajar, PharmD
NSU Research Fellow Zaher Hajar, Pharm.D. at the College of Pharmacy (COP) Center for Consumer Health Informatics Research, assembled a team of clinicians and coders in response to an international app challenge by Microsoft and Health 2.0. The “Re-imagining Consumer Health with Windows 8 and Healthvault Challenge” called upon innovators to design a “next generation health management app”. Hajar and the team, comprised of NSU COP faculty Kevin A. Clauson, Pharm.D. and evangelists from Techmind, created an app named Health eConnect and submitted their entry.
Following deliberation by a panel of judges from Microsoft, it was recently announced on Health 2.0 News that NSU’s Health eConnect app was crowned the winner of the app challenge. As the first place winner, the team is awarded $10,000, a Microsoft Surface Pro, and inclusion as one of Microsoft preferred Window 8 partners. Submission of the Health eConnect app to the Windows Store under terms of the challenge also grants a waiver of the standard Go-Live fee ($20,000) in addition to other benefits tied to HealthVault fees.
Hajar explained that, “Health eConnect will leverage the data aggregation of Microsoft HealthVault, wireless connectivity of devices including blood pressure cuffs, glucometers, and activity trackers, and the integration of an appealing Windows 8 interface to re-imagine consumer health”. It will also “build on Healthvault’s robust synchronization with pharmacies to import medication regimens, alert consumers about interactions, and use data visualization to help identify areas for improving adherence”.