How Chronolife's smart T-shirt aims to help veterans
Medtech company Chronolife has developed a monitoring device that is capable of continuously tracking wearers’ health status to monitor their mental health. Worn as a T-shirt and machine-washable like other items of clothing, it's discreet enough to allow people to continue with their daily activities while passively tracking their health.
The company recently partnered with Mission1st a health IT provider to the US Department of Defense (DoD) to develop the wearable for people in the military, as the T-shirt enables remote monitoring without being intrusive to rigorous activities like intense training or actual combat.
We caught up with the Chronolife team to find out more about how they aim to support the mental health of soldiers and veterans.
Why Chronolife was founded and what is the company's mission?
Chronolife was founded in 2015. Our medtech solution is helping create a new healthcare model where people can receive regular, continuous health follow-up from the comfort of their home and throughout their normal daily lives without interference.
We’re working towards a future where critical medical events can be pre-empted and precious hospital intensive care units (ICU) space is only reserved for those who need it most –– patients can, and should be able to recover and revitalise in their own place of choice safely and comfortably.
How was the idea for this wearable T-shirt for the military conceived?
Chronolife’s technology enables us to develop smart wearables that integrate multiple sensors within the fabric itself to monitor several physiological parameters. Due to this multi-parametric character, Chronolife solutions are suitable for many use cases, including the defense world.
Chronolife has always been convinced of the importance of monitoring the health status of military personnel to guarantee their safety in the battlefield but also outside of combat. By partnering with Mission First Solutions, we are developing monitoring solutions adapted to the extreme conditions to which military personnel are exposed and guaranteeing a follow-up of veterans subject to post-traumatic stress disorder.
What key health challenges do people in the military face?
According to a RAND study, approximately 18.5% of US service members returning from Afghanistan and Iraq have PTSD or depression. The most well-known mental health challenges that are faced by service members and veterans include depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which is often associated with medical conditions such as cardiovascular disease, asthma, chronic pain, and diabetes.
How does it detect soldiers' stress levels, and what happens once this is flagged?
Our smart wearables continuously track physiological parameters such as heart rate and temperatures that signal stress and anxiety. Once flagged, military generals can remove at-risk soldiers from combat fields who have abnormally high stress levels which can impact operations.
How will the wearable T-shirt be made available to those in the military who need it?
Once developed, the solutions will be made available through existing agreements between Mission First Solutions and the Department of Defense (DoD) and Defense Health Agency (DHA) for stress and post-traumatic stress disorder monitoring and assessment programmes.