health & technology
dramatically fail to keep people on track, then the ‘gamification’ of getting people to adhere to regimens – whether fitness, diet, stress reduction or even beauty – seems to work far better. Gamification means putting into play
elements like voluntary participation, rules, points, levels of achievement, challenges/goals, rewards and a social feedback system – all of which, say the experts, are uniquely powerful tools to keep people engaged in the health ‘game’. Certainly, when you add this social gaming layer (peer/network pressure), research shows people are radically more likely to adhere. Add into the mix all the new gadgets
that make it easier to monitor bio- information and connect the results online – uploading every vital sign, calorie burned and step taken – and you can see how the online wellness game could get very precise and real.
WELLNESS GAME EVOLUTION While fitness/health games such as Wii Fit and Nintendo’s Let’s Yoga! have been around for years, wellness gaming concepts are getting far more interesting and complex. Improving health behaviour is a US$2.5 trillion opportunity, says digital marketing expert Shaun Quigley in the blog, Can Games Fix American Healthcare? With stakeholders including hospitals,
doctors, insurance and pharmaceutical companies worldwide, the medical
Exercise could lead to rewards
establishment is getting involved too. The leader in this movement is the US-based ‘Games for Health’ project, which brings medical professionals and game developers together to study how cutting-edge games – such as exer- gaming, physical therapy, bio-feedback, nutrition and emotional health games – can be an innovative force in improving people’s health.
World-renowned medical institutions
like the Mayo Clinic in the US are holding conferences such as ‘Games as Life-Changers’. Elsewhere, insurance giant Aetna has partnered with wellness game developer MindBloom to launch Life Game, which is designed to make it fun, rewarding and social for members to achieve wellbeing goals. Meanwhile SuperBetter (see info
panel 1, p47) is a new game from SuperBetter Labs, a digital serious games company. Its goal is “to turn everyday folks into superheroes for health” – a mission which revolves around a social platform that allows people to recruit their friends, family and physicians as allies in their quest for wellbeing. Meanwhile sites like the US-based
HealthyWage.com allow dieters to bet their money (and profit nicely) if they lose weight. Nike+, FitBit and other GPS- and bio-based fitness tracking apps allow exercisers worldwide to archive their workouts and compete in online network challenges. Skimble, a mobile fitness platform that schedules short workouts into a busy day, shares people’s progress socially on Facebook and Twitter. And OptumizeMe lets users dish out/accept physical challenges. Soon to launch, tween-focused Zamzee uses hip-worn sensors to reward kids for physical activity, awarding points they can redeem for shopping and so on. Given their massive healthcare
costs, corporations will also continue
Life Game is a partnership between US insurance giant Aetna and wellness game developer MindBloom 48 Read Health Club Management online at
healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital june 2012 © cybertrek 2012
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