This past June, as part of his WWDC keynote, Apple VP Craig Federighi introduced HealthKit. Last week, Apple put out this press release, announcing that iOS 8, which includes HealthKit, would officially be available on September 17th. From the release:

The new Health app gathers the information you choose from your various health apps and fitness devices, and provides you with a clear and current overview in one place. HealthKit APIs offer developers the ability for health and fitness apps to communicate with each other. With your permission, each app can use specific information from other apps to provide a more comprehensive way to manage your health and fitness. Users will be able to gather and monitor their own fitness metrics using apps such as MyFitnessPal, RunKeeper and Strava. Healthcare providers can now monitor the data their patients choose to share through apps such as Mayo Clinic or Epic’s MyChart app that will be used by Duke Medicine and Stanford Children’s Health/Stanford Medicine, among others.

Details are now starting to emerge on the Duke and Stanford efforts. From the linked article:

Stanford Children’s Chief Medical Information Officer Christopher Longhurst told Reuters that Stanford and Duke were among the furthest along.

Longhurst said that in the first Stanford trial, young patients with Type 1 diabetes will be sent home with an iPod touch to monitor blood sugar levels between doctor’s visits.

HealthKit makes a critical link between measuring devices, including those used at home by patients, and medical information services relied on by doctors, such as Epic Systems Corp, a partner already announced by Apple.

Medical device makers are taking part in the Stanford and Duke trials.

DexCom Inc (DXCM.O), which makes blood sugar monitoring equipment, is in talks with Apple, Stanford, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration about integrating with HealthKit, said company Chief Technical Officer Jorge Valdes.

DexCom’s device measures glucose levels through a tiny sensor inserted under the skin of the abdomen. That data is transmitted every five minutes to a hand-held receiver, which works with a blood glucose meter. The glucose measuring system then sends the information to DexCom’s mobile app, on an iPhone, for instance.

Under the new system, HealthKit can scoop up the data from DexCom, as well as other app and device makers.

Data can be uploaded from HealthKit into Epic’s “MyChart” application, where it can be viewed by clinicians in Epic’s electronic health record.