Scientific leadership: Professor Tim Chico
About this work
Smartphone and wearable technologies have huge potential to improve our understanding of people’s health. When linked to healthcare records safely, securely, and ethically, smartphone and wearable data can support new opportunities for research into the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cardiovascular conditions.
This programme helped establish collaborations, systems, and approaches to securely link wearable data with electronic health records.
What this programme delivered
Set research priorities
To ensure this resource was fit for purpose, we consulted extensively with:
- UK and international researchers – to identify key research needs and use cases
- Healthcare professionals – to determine how smartphone and wearable data could support clinical practice
- Patients and public contributors – to build public trust and ensure ethical data use
Insights from these discussions informed our report and viewpoint article, which highlighted:
- The need for large-scale, linked smartphone and wearable datasets for cardiovascular research
- Challenges such as data privacy, representativeness, and accessibility
- Opportunities for research to generate real-world impact
Identified data with the highest potential to benefit cardiovascular research
We conducted two national surveys to identify:
- What data researchers and clinicians consider most valuable
- What data the public feels comfortable sharing for research
Key findings:
The most important smartphone and wearable data types for cardiovascular research included heart rate, heart rhythm, activity, and sleep.
Over 75% of the public expressed willingness to share these types of data for research.
Read the full report for more details.
This study was co-designed with public contributors, ensuring clear, accessible language and broad representation.
Developed a framework for secure data linkage
To support research-ready smartphone and wearable data linked to NHS records, we:
- Co-designed participant information and consent materials, now being used in studies at Sheffield University and UK CliC
- Adapted the RADAR-base platform (in collaboration with King’s College London and UCL) to support participant consent and NHS data linkage
These developments provided a foundation for future large-scale wearable data studies.
Supported the development of a national data resource
We worked on establishing a scalable, linked dataset that would allow researchers to:
- Conduct longitudinal analyses of cardiovascular health using real-world smartphone and wearable data
- Investigate disease trajectories, early warning signs, and intervention effectiveness
- Explore how insights from smartphones and wearables can complement clinical data to improve patient outcomes
As we developed this resource, we actively engaged with the research community, funders, and public contributors to ensure it met the needs of cardiovascular researchers while maintaining public trust.
Built capacity and strengthened partnerships
We collaborated with key organisations to advance smartphone and wearable research, including:
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