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Apple is planning to open two "AC Wellness" health clinics for its employees and their families this spring, reports CNBC. The clinics, detailed on an accompanying AC Wellness website, will serve Apple employees in Santa Clara County, which is where its Apple Park and One Infinite Loop campuses are located.

One of the clinics, the Apple Park Wellness Center, will be located on the Apple Park campus, according job listings posted LinkedIn, Glassdoor, and Indeed.

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AC Wellness Network is an independent medical practice exclusively dedicated to delivering compassionate, effective healthcare to the Apple employee and dependent population at the Apple Wellness Centers in Santa Clara Valley, including the new Apple Park Wellness Center. AC Wellness Network believes that having trusting, accessible relationships with our patients, enabled by technology, promotes high-quality care and a unique patient experience.
AC Wellness job listings also describe the clinic experience, which is meant to offer a "unique concierge-like healthcare experience" for employees and their dependents. Several positions are open at the AC Wellness locations ahead of their planned opening this spring, with Apple seeking physicians, nurses, a clinical exercise coach, a behavioral health partner, and more.

As Apple prepares to launch its AC Wellness clinics, it has scaled back its partnership with Crossover Health, its current in-house clinic provider. Apple considered purchasing Crossover Health at one point, but no deal materialized after several months of discussion.

Sources that spoke to CNBC said that Apple plans to use its medical clinics as a way to "test out" its health services and products. Apple is exploring several health-related advancements, such as non-invasive blood glucose monitoring, and it has begun heavily investing in health-related research with CareKit and ResearchKit.

Most recently, Apple launched a medical study in partnership with Stanford to determine whether the Apple Watch can accurately predict irregular heart rhythms. The study is live and can be joined by downloading the Apple Heart Study app from the App Store.

Article Link: Apple Launching 'AC Wellness' Medical Clinics for its Employees
 
The future of everyday health really lies in the future of our smartphones and peripheral technology

I agree having access to our health data on our phones is something to be considered being how we rely on our smart phones for many different tasks, but privacy is another consideration when dealing with such sensitive information as well.
 
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If this serves as a preventative care model where I can provide evidence that taking care of myself justifies lower premiums (ie good driving record) vs subsidizing those that don’t even try eating healthy, exercising or monitoring stress, I’m all for it. Even better if it motivates others to do the same, assuming they’re willing to share health information voluntarily.
 
This is interesting Apple are probably using this to test out possible future health related features of the Apple Watch, if that is the case i don't see them being ready for the Series 4 later this year.
 
This is interesting Apple are probably using this to test out possible future health related features of the Apple Watch, if that is the case i don't see them being ready for the Series 4 later this year.

I don’t see glucose monitoring being ready for Series 4. It’s possible, but I feel like that technology still another generation out. Nonetheless, huge health benefit when it is ready.
 
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I don’t see glucose monitoring being ready for Series 4. It’s possible, but I feel like that technology still another generation out. Nonetheless, huge health benefit when it is ready.
Glucose monitoring isn’t coming to the way h anytime soon. This opinion is mine, but I have 20 years On the job working in a laboratory. While this would be great, it’s not happening anytime soon.
 
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So essentially Apple plans to use its employees as guinea pigs?

So essentialy ANY company allow volunteer to test their products if it trust them enough, wether it's a gaming company testing a new game or Apple testing a smarspeaker or a new watch, is it really surprising to you? Should it test it on customers? or someonelse employee?
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How are Foxconn workers doing these days
Ask Foxcon or government that allow it.

I don't understand why Microsoft, Sony, Apple, Nokia, Amazon, Dell, Acer, Cisco, Google, HP and so on should be responsible for it.
 
So essentialy ANY company allow volunteer to test their products if it trust them enough, wether it's a gaming company testing a new game or Apple testing a smarspeaker or a new watch, is it really surprising to you? Should it test it on customers? or someonelse employee?

No. You open a study(possibly paid) and have people sign up. You are as transparent as possible about what data you are recording and what they do with it.

Just like drug manufacturers do. Collecting and using medical info opens a whole new set of hurdles to jump through
 
No. You open a study(possibly paid) and have people sign up. You are as transparent as possible about what data you are recording and what they do with it.

Just like drug manufacturers do. Collecting and using medical info opens a whole new set of hurdles to jump through

Yeah...because your sugar level are a big deal to share. Or play a new videogame at home. If you don't want to do a 30 minutes test you just don't sign up for it, easy! Some people it's happy to test new ****, and yes you are paid, since it's done during working hours, and you generally get something out of it once it's finished.
 
Guessing the “AC” in “AC Wellnes” stands for Apple Care?

AC is a support group for people who bought Apple Care thinking Apple will replace their products that they misuse or destroy.

So essentialy ANY company allow volunteer to test their products if it trust them enough, wether it's a gaming company testing a new game or Apple testing a smarspeaker or a new watch, is it really surprising to you? Should it test it on customers? or someonelse employee?

Apple should always do usability testing with users of their projects and not employees. Testing with employees leads to confirmation bias. That's why Apple's software especially is so awful.
 
The future of everyday health really lies in the future of our smartphones and peripheral technology
No it doesn't. It's about taking care of your body, with regard to nutrition, and exercise. I don't need a phone or a watch to tell me its a good idea to stand now. True, the apple watches can help motivate some people, but it all boils down to personal decisions.
 
If they want to turn their devices into medical devices and market them as such or having that ability they'll need to be FDA approved I guess. At least in the European Union that'll be necessary and it'll be up to each country's national regulatory agency in coordination with the European Medicines Agency to decide.
 
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We have something like this at my company. It offers services for minor illness/injuries, annual physicals, biometric screenings, behavioral health, wellness etc. I’m assuming that’s what Apple is doing. I’ll bet more companies start doing it.
 
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Yeah...because your sugar level are a big deal to share. Or play a new videogame at home. If you don't want to do a 30 minutes test you just don't sign up for it, easy! Some people it's happy to test new ****, and yes you are paid, since it's done during working hours, and you generally get something out of it once it's finished.
Ok so now we know you have no idea how medical studies work. If you want to share your medical info with your employer. Go ahead. I would prefer my employer doesn’t have my medical info.

It wouldn’t surprise me if Apple could monitor employees who participate in the study. Movement around campus. Etc.
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If they want to turn their devices into medical devices and market them as such or having that ability they'll need to be FDA approved I guess. At least in the European Union that'll be necessary and it'll be up to each country's national regulatory agency in coordination with the European Medicines Agency to decide.
It’s a whole new game when the fda is involved. I hope they figure it out. Would be a great feature, just gonna take a while. I dont see this released within the next 5 years. Too many chances for a lawsuit. If someone dies because of a false watch glucose reading.......
 
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AC is a support group for people who bought Apple Care thinking Apple will replace their products that they misuse or destroy.



Apple should always do usability testing with users of their projects and not employees. Testing with employees leads to confirmation bias. That's why Apple's software especially is so awful.

They do both, actually not only both but there is also QA involved, this is not just Apple it's any company
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Ok so now we know you have no idea how medical studies work. If you want to share your medical info with your employer. Go ahead. I would prefer my employer doesn’t have my medical info.
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It’s a whole new game when the fda is involved.

Now we know you don't know how Apple Welness work, all the medical staff is not allowed in any way to share any medical data with the company, same deal for legal assistance. You can get a tooth extraction or assistance with legal litigation with your landlord without anyone in Apple know a thing. they are not Apple Employees. They are external and indipendent contractors.
 
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We have something like this at my company. It offers services for minor illness/injuries, annual physicals, biometric screenings, behavioral health, wellness etc. I’m assuming that’s what Apple is doing. I’ll bet more companies start doing it.

Yeah many company have wellness as a perk, just Apple raise that up a notch, I don't know any other company who has dentist, physioterapist, Optometryst (did I said that right?) GP, Nutritionist, massages and so on.
 
They do both, actually not only both but there is also QA involved, this is not just Apple it's any company
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Now we know you don't know how Apple Welness work, all the medical staff is not allowed in any way to share any medical data with the company, same deal for legal assistance. You can get a tooth extraction or assistance with legal litigation with your landlord without anyone in Apple know a thing. they are not Apple Employees. They are external and indipendent contractors.
That’s all fine and good. But the fact is they are running a health related study. It is being run under the disguise of a clinic. If you think Apple doesn’t have access to select info from this “study”. I’m sorry.

Is insurance being used. Is Apple acting as an insurance company and paying the bill for the clinics patients? It’s a world based in info. There is no cloud privacy. iPhones are not a secure as people wanted to believe. Why help add personal medical information.
 
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