A new digital support tool that can help patients achieve clinically-meaningful weight loss has been launched by University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust.
W8Buddy – WeightBuddy – has been specifically developed for NHS Tier 3 Weight Management Services by DDM Health.
It is a bespoke version Gro Health, the highest-rated health app in the UK.
DDM Health worked with Dr Petra Hanson, a clinical lecturer in diabetes and endocrinology at the National Institute for Health Research, on the project.
The resulting platform provides patients with a personalised weight management plan, supporting an individual and their family or carers to develop attitudes, beliefs, knowledge, and skills to self manage their health.
Key features include structured education, behavioural change activities or resources, meal and exercise logging, and coaching to support lifestyle modifications including diet, improving physical activity, quitting smoking, and losing weight.
W8Buddy was not only inspired by our patients, but also co-created with them, alongside the clinical team in a truly-unique collaboration
The platform also has a clinician dashboard that feeds back real-time progress to clinical teams.
Each user’s experience is tailored to their individial goal, accessibility and literacy needs, language, disease profile, ethnicity, age, gender, and location.
With over 60 modules, the service is available in 12 languages with culturally-sensitive meal plans, resources, and marketing developed with inclusivity and representation of the diverse populations it seeks to serve.
We are delighted to empower patients to achieve clinically-meaningful weight loss with our AI-powered precision digital health platform
Dr Hanson, who was highly commended for her work at the NHS England Digital and Data Awards, said: “This is an incredibly-exciting innovation that will transform the way we deliver care.
“W8Buddy was not only inspired by our patients, but also co-created with them, alongside the clinical team in a truly-unique collaboration.
“We hope this new digital support tool empowers our patients and leads to meaningful health improvements”.
Charlotte Summers, founding chief operations officer at DDM Health, added: “We are delighted to continue our partnership with University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust to empower patients to achieve clinically-meaningful weight loss with our AI-powered precision digital health platform.”