This past fall, I was invited to serve on the planning committee for the Global Forum on Innovation in Health Professional Education, an ongoing, convening activity of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. I - a nonnurse - was also asked to give a presentation at a workshop titled Improving Health Professional Education and Practice Through Technology.

The workshop, and the opportunities to learn about the different uses of technologies to foster interprofessional teamwork, were invigorating. Speakers told of innovations across the globe in areas such as immersive virtual environments, social media, and digital learning. We also had some rapid-fire sessions and innovator tables where we could examine new tools. The focus was on positive as well as unintended consequences of technology and how to bridge the gap between education and practice. (To view the presentations and access videos and slides, visit http://www.nationalacademies.org/hmd/Activities/Global/InnovationHealthProfEduca.)

I began my presentation with basics about connected care, and then I shared a patient story, "Meet Josephine." (See a video of my presentation, as http://supplementalvideo1(https://www.nationalacademies.org/hmd/Activities/Globa.) Josephine, 86 years old, was recently discharged to her daughter's home after a hip and femur fracture. I used her story to illustrate how a smart home and smart devices could connect with Josephine's health ecosystem, within which Josephine, as a partner in care, could interact with an extensive interprofessional team of health care providers.

In the conversation following the presentation, questions focused on accessibility and how one could afford these digital tools. We spoke of the potential of a digital divide and also how insurance companies and hospitals might make these health tools available. Many asked how many of these technologies were currently available, and I had to admit that some of the technologies I described were those imagined for the future.

DEVICES FOR JOSEPHINE

Then came January and CES 2018, the annual Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas. Reading about this year's show, I realized that the devices in my scenario were becoming more available in the consumer marketplace. CES 2018 was not just for technology geeks but was now attracting more health care professionals. Sarasohn-Kahn (2018) summed up CES 2018: "Health is the new black if this year's annual CES 2018 is an indicator. Even the new connected cars have a health story to tell at this yearly get-together of shiny new-new things in consumer-facing technology."

Let's look at the world of digital health 2018. Two videos speak to growth in the consumer marketplace: CES 2018 I.E. Health and Human Touch (http://supplementalvideo2(https://youtu.be/5ZxLVX16yQQ)) and CES 2018: Health CGTN (http://supplementalvideo3(https://youtu.be/674-vXalj9U)). Let's take a look at some of the latest digital health tools that will enter into the connected care ecosystem that might be useful for the 86-year-old Josephine.

Josephine can be connected via Medically Home Group (http://www.medicallyhome.com/) to her interprofessional team from its mission control unit and have in-home, on-demand virtual visits.

Her Samsung Family Hub refrigerator is readily available. Besides being a social connector for the family, the refrigerator is now a voice assistant that can help with recipes, provide alerts about food allergies, answer questions, and connect with other family members. It can also connect with a payment system and use coupons and loyalty cards to order groceries. It will be only a matter of time before this refrigerator transforms into a health hub that helps with medication reminders, orders medications, and sends questions to Josephine's primary care team.

If Josephine is nervous about another fall, she has several options. One is fashionable smart shoes by E-Vone (https://www.engadget.com/2018/01/07/e-vone-smart-shoes/), which has a GPS and sensors that detect abnormal movement and will automatically send an alert to an emergency contact or call 911. (There is also a version for runners.) Josephine could also wear a fanny pack, Helite Hip'Air (https://www.helite.com/airbag-senior), which contains sensors and inflates an airbag to break a fall.

If Josephine's eyesight begins to deteriorate, she can use MyEye 2.0, which will translate visual data such as text, faces, and objects like dollar bills into audio (see http://supplementalvideo4(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxjSFpLMxUs)).

If she suffers from any chronic pain, she can use the Oska Pulse (https://www.oskawellness.com/products/oska-pulse), a device designed to relieve minor pain using electromagnetic pulses. There is also an accompanying app to track her pain relief.

If Josephine is worried about sun exposure when she is out walking or doing gardening, she can use a wearable from L'Oreal called UV Sense. It is worn on the fingernail (http://www.lorealusa.com/media/press-releases/2018/january/uv-sense).

If she needs to monitor her heart as well as her fitness, she has several choices. She can use her Apple smartwatch for fitness tracking and take advantage of its new heart-monitoring features (https://www.apple.com/ios/health/). Or she can try the new Omoron HeartGuide (see http://supplementalvideo5(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsnqnIsLfOY)), which has an inflatable wristband to measure blood pressure. There's no need to plug in another device - this blood pressure smartwatch is currently being cleared by the FDA as a Class 2 medical device.

And just in case, there are also some new products for the bathroom. Kohler has introduced a new toilet, Numi (http://www.us.kohler.com/us/numi-toilet-standard-remote/productDetail/toilets/13), which allows for personalized customization. Its voice-activated commands and motion activation make it hands-free and self-cleaning with a nightlight function. But, if you want a bathroom that handles beauty and health together, check out the smart bathroom of the future by CareOs (http://www.care-os.com/). What you will see is facial recognition, artificial intelligence, and augmented reality rolled into a system with your own personal care assistant.

DEVICES FOR OTHER AGE GROUPS

Here are some interesting digital health tools for other age groups. One of my favorites is the My Special Aflac Duck, a social, interactive robot that provides comfort to children with cancer (http://aflacchildhoodcancer.org/). Children are given emoji cards that express feelings. When they show a card to the duck, it will verbally express that emotion. My Special Aflac Duck is also a learning tool with a port-a-cath to receive chemotherapy.

The Kolibree Magik toothbrush (http://www.kolibree.com/en/) helps children improve their oral hygiene. The toothbrush is connected to a front-facing camera that powers an augmented reality game. It motivates, educates, and tracks the child's oral hygiene. Just think, you can prevent cavities by brushing your teeth while fighting monsters.

Worried parents of children with peanut or gluten allergies can send them to school with a smart sensor tool called Nima that detects peanut or gluten traces in foods (https://nimasensor.com/). There is even a new mouth guard that detects concussion, designed by graduate students in collaboration with the Cleveland Clinic (http://www.wired.com/story/this-smart-mouthguard-can-monitor-concussions/).

Here are some new products for adults:

* HiMirror Mini uses Amazon's voice-activated digital assistant, Alexa, to analyze your skin (see http://supplementalvideo6(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jC-CDff_Dq4)). It will tell you if you need more sleep or if your skincare product is not doing much for those wrinkles.

* CardioNexion is a connected medical device that monitors and tracks cardiovascular pathologies (see http://supplementalvideo7(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cr36OX5fhKU)). This device is integrated into clothing, such as a tee-shirt, vest, or bra.

* Motus Smart is a smart boot specifically designed for diabetic patients (http://www.mobihealthnews.com/content/health-footwear-companies-partnership-yiel).

* And this was a record year for smart sleep devices, which include the Nokia Number 360 Smart Bed (see http://supplementalvideo8(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ4bWjUSXsY)), which can track irregular heartbeats or breathing patterns and report back to your health care provider, and Somnox, a robotic pillow that helps with your breathing and provides an audio component (see http://supplementalvideo9(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POFkQnqMnE4)).

So, why should you, as an educator, care about all these devices? I think Sarasohn-Kahn (2018) summarized her CES experience well: "[I can] more clearly envision and broaden my take on the health care ecosystem with the person/patient/consumer at the center. The implications for health-at-home are huge. Many companies are laying the foundation for us to move health/care where we live, work, play and learn." Note her words of warning to hospitals, clinicians, and medical supply companies: "The new front door for health/care will be the patient's home front door."

TAKEAWAYS FOR EDUCATORS

As an educator, how are you preparing the next generation of nurses to provide and manage care for populations who will be using digital health tools that collect quantifiable health data? Here are some takeaway messages for you as educators:

1. Think about how to integrate this knowledge into your curriculum. How will you address the concept of health-at-home, a concept promoted years ago by Dr. Patricia Brennan, director of the National Library of Medicine (NLM, 2017)? Just in case you are not convinced by the tech-world forecasts, take a look at the NLM's Strategic Plan 2017-2027, which states, "Clinical care is rapidly migrating from hospital to home. This migration challenges NLM to reach into these places where health occurs."

2. How are you preparing your students to engage in the next generation of patient care as partners, where patients have more data and knowledge about their health than you do?

3. Begin thinking about expanding simulation centers to move beyond hospital beds to a home ecosystem and make your wish lists of digital health home tools that your students need to learn.

4. Work with your health care partners to offer a digital health demonstration day featuring new tools provided by companies, so that you can work collaboratively to tackle how to prepare current and future health care professionals.

5. Stay tuned for next month's column: The Invisible Health Care Professional: The Intersection of Data, Devices, and AI (artificial intelligence).

And as always, you can contact me at mailto:[email protected].

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