The Continua Health Alliance

The Continua Health Alliance is an open industry group of technology, healthcare and fitness companies that will establish an ecosystem of connected personal health products and services, making it possible for patients, caregivers and healthcare providers to more proactively address ongoing healthcare needs.

The Continua Health Alliance is working to provide interoperable devices and services in three major categories: chronic disease management, elderly monitoring, and proactive health and physical fitness.

By enabling a network of readily-connected health and medical devices, people with diabetes or other chronic diseases will be able to share glucose, blood pressure and other vital sign information with their doctors. Adult children will be able to monitor the health of their aging parents. Diet and fitness-conscious individuals will also be able to share their weight and exercise data with fitness consultants through the Internet.

The Continua Health Alliance design guidelines will be based on proven connectivity standards, such as Bluetooth®, USB, Wi-Fi™ and ZigBee™, among others. The group plans to deliver the guidelines within the next 18 months.

The group also intends to establish a product certification program with a recognizable logo signifying that the product is interoperable. Products made under Continua Health Alliance guidelines will provide consumers with increased assurance of interoperability between devices, enabling them to more easily share information with caregivers and service providers.

Through collaborations with government agencies and others, the alliance will work to provide guidelines for the effective management of diverse products and services from a global network of vendors.

Founding members of the group include Avita, BodyMedia, Cisco, GE Healthcare, IBM, Intel, Kaiser Permanente, Medtronic, Motorola, Nonin, Omron, Panasonic, Partners HealthCare, Philips Electronics, Polar Electro, RMD Networks, Roche, Samsung Electronics, Sharp, Tunstall, Welch-Allyn and Zensys.

David Whitlinger, Director of Healthcare Standards in Intel’s Digital Health Group, will serve as Chairman of the Alliance.