Machine learning helps us bring context &amp; meaning to people’s health.

When we started Abridge a little over two years ago, we grounded ourselves in a simple statement: that healthcare is about stories. These stories could take many forms, starting with the conversations people have with their doctors, and extending into the updates they give their friends and family. Stories can also be found in the notes that are captured in official medical records, and in all the ways people offer support to others in their community...

Decode jargon faster with our new medical definitions feature.

Simon King

We’ve all been there. A doctor’s appointment with tons of jargon and complex instructions that leave our head spinning. If you’re like most of our users, that’s why you downloaded Abridge. But we often hear that gaining a better understanding of medical terms could be even faster. So today, we’ve made a big improvement with our “In this conversation” feature. Now, you’ll be able to see definitions for medical terms in the context of your conversation.

Our approach to machine learning: Art + Science.

Sandeep Konam

We founded Abridge with the belief that conversations between patients and doctors provide some of the most important insights into how people can live healthier lives. While the ability to extract insights from those conversations has historically been challenging, the many recent advances in machine learning have generated an opportunity for us to bring more focus and understanding to people’s health.

A growing number of patients record their conversations with doctors. Here’s why.

At 30, Steve Giallourakis, has had more experience with the healthcare system than most people have in their lifetimes. Giallourakis, a patient advocate who lives in the Cleveland area and is currently finishing his bachelor’s degree in advanced mathematics, was diagnosed with his first cancer when he was 15. He recently had surgery that successfully removed portions of one of his kidneys, part of the treatment for his fourth cancer. One of the most stressful and disorienting periods in his 15-year odyssey came last September.

6 things we've learned about staying on top of your health — and how Abridge helps.

At Abridge, our goal is to help people understand and follow through with every aspect of their health, so we continuously seek input on people’s needs to make sure we’re doing just that. Recently, we asked hundreds of people to tell us more about how they use Abridge and the impact it's had on their health. What really came through was that people have key challenges that Abridge solves for them — remembering the details, keeping people on the same page, and more. Here’s a summary of the 6 biggest things we learned.

Introducing a whole new Abridge.

Simon King

Since we launched, we’ve heard feedback from people about how they use Abridge — and how they’d like to. That’s why today, we’re excited to introduce a bunch of improvements that will make it easier to organize and follow up on your care. When you update the app, you’ll find a revamped home screen and a host of new features based on feedback from Abridge users like you. Let’s dive in to what you’ll find in the redesigned Abridge.

Keep family close by with Abridge's new calling feature.

In recent months, COVID-19 visitor restrictions have left many people without their usual support systems during medical appointments. Even in non-pandemic times, loved ones aren't always able to join patients at appointments big and small. When we can’t be present with one another, it’s even more important to find other ways to help people stay on the same page. We’ve heard from many people who use Abridge that they’d like a way to dial in family members to appointments that they also record with Abridge — so we built it.

Abridge, now and in the future: Announcing new product changes and our latest round of funding.

October 5, 2020

Shiv Rao, MD

Conversations between people and their doctors are full of important insights — but actually acting on them can be another story altogether. People say they tend to remember the beginning and end of conversations with doctors, but the details of their care plan are often lost. Two years ago, we started thinking about ways to help change this dynamic by empowering people to understand and follow up on their health. We realized that if we could just help them capture and reflect on their health conversations, then we could actually make it easier to understand and act on their care.

How machine learning supports understanding and follow-through in healthcare

Sandeep Konam

Everything we do at Abridge, whether it’s our focus on user experience, our dedication to security and privacy, or our approach to customer support, is ultimately in service of our core mission: to help people understand and follow-through on their health. But when it comes to the rawest building blocks of understanding and follow-through—those key insights, transcribed, highlighted, and defined—it’s our trailblazing work in machine learning research that makes the rest of the Abridge experience possible.

Keep track of your Care Team

Simon King

Keeping track of your doctors and other medical professionals can be challenging. The average person makes three doctors' visits per year, and for those taking care of children or elderly family members, the list of appointments and contact details for each one is even longer.

Looking for disparities in our Machine Learning models

January 12, 2021

Elisa Ferracane

Our intention at Abridge has always been to create machine learning algorithms that support better understanding and follow-through. However, we recognize that disparities and biases exist in the U.S. healthcare system, as evidenced by a wealth of studies. For example, women experience longer delays in diagnosis and are prescribed less medication for pain, which is more often attributed to psychogenic causes.

6 tips for making the most out of your doctors' visits

Visits to the doctor often offer a snapshot of our overall health at a given point in time. But whether we’re visiting a specialist routinely or just touching base with a primary care physician annually, it’s helpful to make the most of each of these appointments.

Can you record a doctor’s visit?

We hear from a lot of people that they’re interested in taking more control over their health but feel a little uncertain about taking that next step. In fact, one of the most common questions we get is whether you can record a doctor’s visit. For many people, the question is two-pronged: A matter of comfort, and, well, a question about what’s allowed!

4 things we learned about healthcare habits and preferences after a year of pandemic living