EXCLUSIVE: A new app for patients to monitor and track their medicinal cannabis use launches later this month.
OnTracka is the brainchild of Australian cancer survivor and tech pioneer Chad Walkaden, who used his own experience to build an app which aims to “legitimise cannabinoids into healthcare around the world”.
OnTracka provides users with a safe, secure and easy way to monitor the progress they make with cannabis while collecting research data to support industry growth.
Walkaden told Cannabiz he came up with the idea after being diagnosed with stage four cancer and turning to cannabis after being told his condition was terminal.
He said: “In five months, I went from a guy dying of cancer to being back working and living a life free of side effects.”
A mental health professional by background, Walkaden began manually tracking his cannabis use and the impact it was having on his physical and mental well-being. After his recovery, he developed OnTracka with a technical team to help other patients stay on track.
He said: “There are different inputs. We’re very focused on the collection of habits, how you can monitor dosing and get reminders about that. But also look at the different medications you’re taking. It’s a buddy to someone going through a journey with their cannabis.”
OnTracka will be free for patients to download, with revenue coming from partnerships with companies using anonymised data from the app to learn how their products are used.
The data will also be used for research purposes and made available to doctors and other healthcare professionals prescribing medicinal cannabis. Users will be able to opt out if they don’t want their anonymised data included in aggregated form.
Walkaden said OnTracka’s primary goals are to improve patient well-being and build a solid data set and it would only enter into commercial relationships if companies had complementary values.
“If you’re a company and we’re talking to you, that means we believe your interests are to support your patients,” he added.
- You can watch Cannabiz co-founder and chief growth officer Martin Lane’s interview with Chad Walkaden here.