Daniel Kraft delivered a talk at the Pioneers Festival in which he shares some of his views and insights into Hacking the Human Body and what he foresaw could be the Future of Medicine. After his incredibly inspiring talk we were able to catch up with Daniel to conduct an interview. The first part of our interview with Dr. Kraft is available here.
Part 2 of the interview with Daniel begins with a surprise appearance from Peter Vesterbacka (Mighty Eagle) of Rovio, the creators of the phenomenally popular Angry Birds game. Our interview segued into ideas from highlighting the potential use of Angry Birds for persuasive health scenarios, with Peter Vesterbacka confirming that Rovio was engaging in using games for education.
TRANSCRIPT SUMMARY:
Peter Vesterbacka: (Walks into our interview and greets Daniel and myself) “Hej! It’s been a while” (Peter stands next to us and smiles 
)
MedCrunch: [Peter] we are making an interview, but it is ok [for you] to interrupt.
Daniel Kraft: [Peter] can zoom right on in. [….] Here is an excuse to ask a crazy question; (referring to Peter Vesterbacka), a lot of people [play] Angry Birds and are addicted, would it be neat if you had to do your workout [or other health related activity] until you were able to unlock [levels] on Angry Birds? Have you seen an element of that [or thought about this]?
Peter Vesterbacka: Of course, education is a big deal for us (Rovio) so we have kinda decided to give [more emphasis on education] and we [at Rovio] are working on a bunch of other stuff as well; but education is a huge focus [for Rovio]. Also, exercise for your body and mind; we are building activity parks all over the planet. We are doing a bunch of that stuff!
Daniel Kraft: (Speaking to Peter) Even in this medical context, [it would be advantageous] for a lot of people, if [someone does] enough steps [in daily exercise] or do your diabetes regime, they could then unlock a level.
Peter Vesterbacka: Yeah, we [at Rovio] are looking into that now. (Referring to the potential of persuasive health scenarios Dr. Kraft was describing.)
(Interview continues below:)
Daniel Kraft with Mighty Eagle (aka, Peter Vesterbacka) of Rovio
MedCrunch: The beauty of an interview is it gets … (Fredrik De Bong interrupts saying: ) “Interrupted by interesting people.”
Daniel Kraft: You can throw that part (our interruption with Peter Vesterbacka) in there [into our interview]. I think that part of the future of medicine will be getting people to [make chronic and unfun(ny) diseases] whether it is diabetes or other things, to make it a little more engaging and fun. And, maybe it is by having the engagement of folks like [Peter Vesterbacka] to say we are going to build a platform for diabetics, or partner with a software platform for diabetics, so once you have done enough “diabetes care points” you [can] unlock your game.
MedCrunch: You are referring to gamification?
Daniel Kraft: It’s not just the gamification (referring to health persuasion techniques) but that someone is giving you the reward. You want to play some Angry birds, but Angry Birds itself might not teach you about diabetes, but it is part of your reward for staying on track. So, you don’t get unlimited Angry Birds but you get the next level [as a reward for sticking to your diabetes regime] once you’ve also shown you’ve taken your insulin or checked your blood sugar appropriately. By the way, I don’t think gamification is just for patients, clinicians and physicians [can also benefit] from game elements. [For example] entering data sometimes can be very boring [for clinicians/physicians] and you do not always want to [follow through the entire data entry process] (gamification can encourage clinicians/physicians to complete this process). In the new incentive systems (being implemented in hospitals in the United States) physicians are being rewarded potentially [if their] patients have better glycemic control, or bood pressure. […] So, understanding that whole human behaviour and incentives can be applied beyond that “traditional” games for patients; but even the nursing team, the physicians and staff can have some gaming elements. I am not saying it is going to be always points and badges, but that [gamification element] can help [create a friendly competitive atmosphere] between clinics to see who can get their patients on better blood pressure control with less ER (Emergency Room) visits.
Our interview continues with PART 3 in which MedCrunch asks Daniel Kraft which areas of medicine will benefit most from an entrepreneurial and pioneering mindset. We also discuss whether medical doctors can be seen as natural born hackers, and where can social media be applied in medicine.