Health plays big in Apple launch
Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed several new products today, iPhone 6, an app called Health and the Apple Watch, with health and fitness capabilities. And, said Kevin Lynch, who introduced it, "Over time, Apple Watch gets to know you like a personal trainer would."
The Mayo Clinic did not make it to the stage, but the Minnesota Star Tribune reported this morning that Mayo executives would be on hand "to encourage people to use smartphones, and possibly a smartwatch, to monitor health."
It won't be the first time the Mayo Clinic and Apple have worked together. Back in June when Apple announced its HealthKit, the digital giant touted its work with the Mayo Clinic on an app called Health – and the app is among the products unveiled today, along with the "bigger and faster" iPhone 6 and the Apple Watch.
The iWatch is something else that might garner a Mayo Clinic endorsement as a health tool for improving and maintaining health.
"For healthcare providers like Mayo, the opportunity for exposure on a smartphone can attract new patients and reinforce ties to existing ones," The Star Tribune article noted.
Apple's Cook said the watch represents "some deep innovation – a new innovative way to connect directly from the wrist."
It's also a "comprehensive ehalth and fitness device,'" he said.
Apple also forged a partnership with EHR maker Epic around an app Epic named Haiku, which gives doctors access to patient records.
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