Three products and services designed in Poland’s Podlaskie region monitor the behaviour of addicts and help reduce the risk of relapse. The technology employed collects and analyses behavioural data, to support addiction treatment.
- 27 September 2019
PredictWatch helps me to be aware of what is happening. Thanks to this, I have a better chance of experiencing another day sober.
The first product is an application which can be used on any smart device, including mobile phones and a specially designed watch. Known as PredictWatch Guardian, it is a service for addicts. It analyses the intensity of their cravings, to accurately predict when a relapse could occur.
The second product, PredictWatch Connector, is a service for psychotherapists. Finally, PredictWatch Research is a service for academics who want to use the data collected via the PredictWatch Guardian app in their research. The three products are being made available to the Polish, European and American markets.
Predicting relapse
The PredictWatch Guardian app is designed for people who do not want to relapse back into addiction after undergoing treatment. The app collects information about the user’s daily behaviour, specifically their cravings, which are the best predictor of relapse. It then proposes interventions. Addiction to substances like alcohol, nicotine and drugs is a worldwide problem. Addictive behaviours which don’t involve substance abuse include use of the internet, gambling, or computer games. The PredictWatch Guardian service is available for all types of addiction.
Users of the app are sent reminders a few times daily to answer questions that appear on their smartphone screen. Answering them takes 15 to 30 seconds. The user is asked how he or she is feeling, what their level of stress is and what is currently happening in their lives. In this way the app connects a particular behaviour with the addiction, which helps find the triggers that cause increased cravings.
Protecting identities
The project designed a smart watch to work with the app, after research showed that those addicts who used it responded 87 % of the time. Those who used the app on a computer responded 48 % of the time and those with a phone 64 %.
App users give the National Addiction Research Centre permission to use the information they supply. As the information is sensitive, their identity is kept secret and they can withdraw at any time. Demographic information such as age, sex and place of residence and the addict’s previous therapies are accessed.
The data collected is sent to the project’s servers, where it is analysed in large volumes. An individual profile is created so that personalised intervention for each person can be created. Psychotherapists can use the service to help addicts who need their support.
Videos
Łap Startup ODC. 6, niezwykły zegarek, pomagający walczyć z uzależnieniami, Predict Watch z WarszawyPredictwatch zegarki przewidujące przyszłość - rozmowa z Mateuszem Gola jurorem programu The BrainTotal investment and EU funding
Total investment for the project “PredictWatch: Perfecting and bringing to market innovative services predicting and reducing the risk of relapse during recovery from addictions.” is EUR 269 955, with the EU’s European Regional Development Fund contributing EUR 183 093 through the “OP Eastern Poland” National Operational Programme for the 2014-2020 programming period. The investment falls under the priority “SME’s competitiveness”.