Digital Health – Young and Beautiful

Writer Mona Karaoui talks about her early days at nuviun, and her introduction to the exciting world of digital health.

I am wearing my heart on my face while I write this post, and what you see is not a cardiac arrest, it’s pure joy covered with a pinch of pride, as my heart stretches a little when I think (or write) about nuviun—for completely tangible and valid reasons, as you will (confidently) realize below.

I was a Digital Health outsider when I was first introduced to nuviun’s concept. I remember taking a seat in a brand new half-furnished office with nuviun’s great minds and discussing what their nuviunite dreams were for Dubai, the UAE, the region, and the world; BIG dreams for a small but deeply-rooted local company whose voice and impact could and eventually would reach the entire planet.

I saw a vision, backed with massive passion, drive, and a striking ambition. They knew what they were doing, and I didn’t think twice about hopping on that ship. The next morning, we published our first ever nuviun article. We set up our Twitter account, picked a modest background picture, resized our logo, and then off I went tweeting—one article at a time, one bit of information at a time, one life-changing discovery at a time.

While Digital Health was an alien concept to me at the time, I was not one to give health in general a great deal of attention. That’s why I initially disagreed with Lana del Ray when she asked: “Will you still love me when I’m no longer young and beautiful?” —because youth, and beauty, to the hopeless romantic in me, came from within, and were by no means bound by time or age.

Little did I know.

I knew sound sleep would make me more zealous; I did not know I could have a cool but really smart “TOY” that would measure my sound sleep, and help me better integrate it into my daily routine (Thank you wearable giants).

I knew Robotics were a major scientific breakthrough-in-progress; I did not know robots could now pursue a college education (Hey Watson), let alone read my emotions (I love you Pepper), or fight against Ebola (standing ovation—in favor of all robots on their way to UAE hospitals soon—goes here).

I knew the infamous “Selfie” was introduced in the “Oxford Dictionary” due to its enormous use on all social media platforms; I did not know it would soon enough be used to diagnose genetic and developmental disorders (so first, let’s seriously take a selfie!).

The more I engaged with nuviun, as a reader first and foremost, the more I wanted to explore. Awareness is what nuviun has been so gently instilling in my mind—amongst other minds—as a (no longer) bystander on the Digital Health sidewalk.

That was 10 months ago.

And today, from where I stand, the future looks good — really good, for Dubai, the UAE, the region, and the world; Digital Health’s “young and beautiful” seems to be here to stay (Lucky you Lana!)

Mona Karaoui is a writer and editor. In her posts for nuviun, she provides unique insights and perspectives on digital health through the eyes of the consumer. You can follow Mona on Twitter @monakaraoui or on her blog: fool4words.

The nuviun blog is intended to contribute to discussion and stimulate debate on important issues in global digital health. The views are solely those of the author.