Researchers at Johns Hopkins University have shown that Corrie, a custom app designed for patients who have survived heart attacks, dramatically reduces those patients' chances of being re-admitted to the hospital with complications. The simple bit of technology has the potential to save lives, improve outcomes, and save hospitals hundreds of thousands of dollars.

For patients who have suffered a heart attack and been treated in a hospital, being discharged is only the first step in long road to recovery. Medication non-adherence and re-admission for complications are two major concerns in the post-treatment phase. According to the American Heart Association, just 88 percent of patients fill the prescriptions they're given, 76 percent begin taking them, and 44 percent continue to do so. In one recent analysis, the majority of patients didn't understand the medication regimen they were being prescribed, and two-thirds left the hospital without a follow-up appointment scheduled.

At the same time, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, one in five heart attack survivors are re-admitted to the hospital for complications within a month of being discharged. Medicare annually covers 51,000 such re-admissions, with a bill that exceeds $693 million in additional hospital costs.

William Yang, a resident at Johns Hopkins, and his colleagues saw an opportunity to replace the traditional, paper-based discharge process with an interactive, digital one.