Today I’m hosting a guest post from Peter Smith, Account Manager at Ginger.io. They won Sanofi’s Data Design Diabetes Innovation contest in 2011, and are partnering with Sanofi to bring this interesting technology to more people living with diabetes.

Maybe the best way to explain the concept behind Ginger.io is to quote from a great article at Co.EXIST by Ariel Schwartz.

“Your smartphone is an incredibly powerful tool–one that we mostly waste by just using to make phone calls and check email. But it’s really an advanced bundle of sensors that is with us nearly 24 hours a day, collecting massive amounts of data. Doctors and health professionals are only now starting to understand the opportunity this data can provide. Take a new app that helps silently identify diabetes patients who might be slipping with their treatments.”

“When a Ginger.io user displays abnormal behaviors, an alert goes out to their caregiver network. “The idea is for psychosocial support. This helps [users] go a long way to stay on their treatment regiment,” explains Madan. “It’s a ‘check engine’ light.””

It’s a really interesting idea, and there might be a bunch of insights we can gain with this sort of thing.

With that, let’s get into what Peter has to say.

Scott, thank you so much for allowing us to speak with your readers today.  We’re really excited to share what we’ve been up to and explain how we can help improve your readers’ health!  So what is Ginger.io???  Ginger.io is a small startup on a big mission to change how people living with chronic conditions collect and exchange health information — using just an iPhone or Android smartphone.  Our platform uses the sensors in your smartphone to map the relationship between your behavior and your health — and turn it into insights.

As part of our win at Sanofi US’s 2011 Data Design Diabetes Innovation Challenge, we’re partnering with Sanofi US to offer people living with Type II Diabetes the chance to use our smartphone app to collect data and partner with their loved ones — for free.  So what will you get from the application?

• Personal insights into your health patterns
• Improved connection to your care team
• Satisfaction that you’re helping improve science to benefit the diabetes community

Those interested can learn more about Ginger.io and/or sign up here to get started!  

We’re also looking to roll out a pilot for Type I Diabetics later in 2013 as well.  You can sign up using the same link above and we’ll let you know once we’ve opened up the platform.  If you have any other specific questions you can also email me at [email protected] and I’m more than happy to help out.  I’ve also listed some frequently asked questions below.

What data is collected? We collect general data around texts, calls, and movement. We do not read any texts, listen to any calls, or know exactly where you move.

Is my data secure?  Yes, data is treated just like your medical records.

Will this affect the battery life on my phone?  No, the application only collects data periodically to ensure battery life is not shortened.

Scott, thanks again for helping us share our application with your readers. We look forward to driving health improvement in the diabetes community!

My pleasure, Peter. I’m very excited to watch Ginger.io grow and help people live better with diabetes.