July 5, 2011 
I think one of the most exciting things in pharma in the past few months has been the approval that Pfizer received to allow them to do a virtual trial. This appears to build on a lot of the momentum around remote monitoring, mobile health, telemedicine, and other trends. The key is that this opens up a gateway for broader trials at potentially lower cost.
But, I think the key with any solution like this is the blend of active and passive monitoring. In passive monitoring, you wait for the patient to not provide data and then intervene. In active monitoring, you are prompting them to provide data proactively. Different patients will respond differently, and probably, like adherence programs, you need a mix of both.
Enabling Healthy Decisions 
I find that it is really interesting that the large pharmacological companies are getting involved with remote monitoring and remote health. I work for a Minnesota based company called Sengistix which provides vulnerable individuals with safety and freedom of expanded choices for living with more independence. We do this by utilizing a variety of sensor to be able to “see” inside a clients home. I wonder if the same technology that allows the patients of the trial can be used to help our clients keep track of their meds?