Cybersecurity concern is biggest obstacle in sharing digital health data

Only two in ten Singaporeans are sharing their health data with doctors.

Less than half of Singaporeans said they never or rarely do something about findings on their data health, with their biggest motivator to start acting on it are doctors’ recommendations, Philips’ Healthy Living in Asia data showed.

More than four in ten (42%) said they will only act on the health data-based insights if a doctor or healthcare provider tells them to do so.

Worryingly, only 23% of Singaporeans are sharing this data regularly with their doctors or healthcare providers.

Amongst their top concerns are data privacy (35%) and a lack of know-how on sharing health data (20%).

Ivy Lai, general manager at Philips Singapore said the government will ramp up preventive health in Singapore, with the Healthier SG initiative. She also advised leveraging education as a key to enhance data literacy and use.

“Our research highlights an urgent need for educating both the general population and healthcare professionals alike when it comes to using data and insights to improve preventive health in Singapore,” added Lai.

Increased health check

Singaporeans increased their use of personal health devices with 30% saying they have been checking their health more than they did in 2019,

According to the study, Singaporeans usually check on their heart health (40%), oral health (26%), sleep (34%), and nutrition (37%). They monitor these health factors at least monthly, Philips said.

More than five in 10 said they change their health-related habits but said they want to do more to be healthy.

The survey gathered data from 4,000 people in Singapore, Indonesia, South Korea, and Thailand.