Cailbhe Doherty

Acknowledging the growing prominence of data science and mobile technologies in modern healthcare, my current research focuses on the potential for consumer wearable technologies to revolutionise public health.

The consumer wearable technologies currently being marketed by multinational companies such as Apple, Google, Amazon, Huawei and Samsung are touted by many as being the most likely technologies to decentralise health, wellness and performance measurement. This inverts a model where experts like healthcare professionals, coaches and trainers are the gatekeepers to health- and performance-related knowledge. Coinciding with the hundreds of millions of dollars invested by these companies in their development and marketing, the popularity of consumer wearable devices—watches, wristbands, pendants, glasses, armbands, and other accessories—continues to soar.

Despite their popularity however, research is equivocal about whether consumer wearables can accurately measure biometric outcomes like heart rate, energy expenditure, steps, sleep and stress, for example.

In this context, my research focuses on three things:

1. Investigating the validity of various devices and biometric outcomes through 'agile' experimental designs and methodologies.
2. Developing a public data donation platform for consumer wearables that can liberate wearable data from the confines of manufacturer-specific ecosystems and facilitate research.
3. Engaging with end-users to understand how they interact with their wearable devices, exploring their perceptions regarding accuracy, utility, and privacy.