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Philips Talks Health & Wellness at CES 2021

CES21_Philips Health Chat-Stoltze,Khanna,Tas
The panel, l. to r.: Tas, Khanna and Stolze

Philips offered a “fireside chat”-style conversation during CES 2021 that touched on a topic that is especially germane during COVID-19: the company’s myriad solutions in the health-and-wellness arena, where it plays a dominant role that includes but also extends well beyond consumer-related products.

The discussion was chaired by Jim Stolze, with Philips’ Deeptha Khanna, consumer & patient care chief, and Jeroen Tas, chief innovation and strategy officer, as participants.

“It has been a tragic year,” reflected Tas about the pandemic, “but we have seen the best innovations used at scale to change healthcare systems for the better.” “It has been a challenging year, even for those who are healthy,” added Khanna, “as well as an acceleration of ‘online for everything’ from education to gym lessons.  Health is at the forefront of consciousness.”

Citing Philips’ leading stance in telehealth care innovations, Tas noted the growth in importance in virtual communication with doctors “with cameras at the bedside” to help guide frontline medical workers in their tasks. He also noted the rise in medical information-sharing and how that has helped in collaborative treatment of multiple health issues among consumers.

The Philips Sonicare 9900 Prestige “smart” toothbrush

Khanna spoke of the recent rise in a corollary technology to telehealth: teledentistry. She pointed to a Philips “smart” product innovation that the company believes can aid consumers in managing their dental care in these times: the Sonicare 9900 Prestige, which was just introduced at CES. Through Artificial Intelligence, it helps consumers adjust their dental care by providing a “coached,” personalized cleaning experience, detecting the user’s brushing style and adapting to that during the brushing session using SenseIQ technology. SenseIQ tracks and detects the pressure applied, the cleaning motions used and the coverage achieved; the sensors also monitor how long and how often the user brushes.

Khanna also referenced Philips’ initiatives in the area of prenatal care, through its Pregnancy+  and Baby+ development and tracking apps, which she said are used on a regular basis by 1.5 million consumers. She also cited the Philips partnership with GSK that has endowed those two apps with data for consumers about vaccine-preventable diseases and available vaccines.

Tas added that wearables, which nowadays loom large in the health-and-wellness sector, is another area where Philips has made a mark, particularly in chronic-disease management of conditions such as diabetes and sleep apnea.

Healthcare, added Tas, “is an ecosystem with data at the center of it, and solutions have become smart.” As to the future, added Khanna, “consumers are more aware and want to curate their own healthcare needs, and to be supported through every stage of the life journey.” She averred that Philips is well positioned to serve these consumers’ needs. “We’re leaders in both consumer and professional health and that adds to our insights in proactive, preventive care –  and we already have hundreds of millions of consumer relationships in place.”