Closing the Loop on Health Coaching
Effectiveness improves when transparency on adherence emerges
When we first started the Functional Forum back in 2014, one of our core missions was to popularize the clinician-coach dyad as the most efficient way to deliver functional medicine. My business partner, Gabriel Hoffman, was one of the first coaches in a functional medicine office when I met him in 2008. In our field, one of the foundational principles is that the locus of control must shift from the doctor to the patient. True healing happens when patients become active participants in their own care—when they’re empowered to implement the lifestyle, psychosocial, and environmental changes that underlie sustainable wellness. And that’s where coaching comes in.
Over the past decade, coaching has become an essential element of functional medicine clinics. More and more clinics have embraced the model of pairing a clinician with a dedicated coach to support patient engagement, adherence, and behavior change. At Dr. Burke’s clinic, every patient gets supported by a health coach. Specialized organizations have popped up to train coaches who can complement a clinician’s expertise. Yet, even as coaching has become the standard of care, one key challenge remains: closing the loop on coaching.
The Challenge: Do Patients Really Do What You Recommend?
Every doctor or coach knows that patients often don’t provide an accurate account of their behaviors. You might ask, “How many alcoholic drinks did you have this week?” and the answer might be less than truthful. The reality is, despite best intentions, there’s a persistent gap between what we recommend and what patients actually do. Traditional coaching models rely heavily on self-reporting and the hope that patients will follow through on lifestyle changes. But without objective feedback, the process becomes guesswork—and that, in turn, compromises care.
You probably don’t have to work hard to imagine spending hours meticulously designing protocols for metabolic balance, detoxification, or hormonal optimization, only to discover that your patient isn’t executing the plan as prescribed. That disconnect not only undermines the efficacy of treatment but also wastes valuable clinical time. There’s a clear need for a systematic method to verify patient compliance—one that doesn’t burden the clinician or the coach with endless follow-up calls and manual data collection.
TruNeura’s Innovative Solution: Closing the Loop
At TruNeura, we set out to address this very problem. We asked ourselves: “How can we harness technology not to replace the human touch but to amplify it?” The answer lies in creating a platform that seamlessly integrates actionable data into every patient encounter. With TruNeura, when a practitioner or coach recommends specific actions—be it dietary changes, exercise routines, supplement regimens, or stress-reduction techniques—the system automatically tracks whether those recommendations are being followed.
Critical Coaching Insight at a Glance
TruNeura’s dashboard offers a real-time snapshot of how actively a patient is engaging in their own health. Rather than relying solely on self-reported data (which, let’s face it, can be unreliable), our platform integrates inputs from wearables, patient questionnaires, and direct feedback. The result is an objective measure of patient adherence that lets you know exactly where to focus your coaching efforts. Coaches can message the patient easily through the platform.
Furthermore our platform shows both practitioner and coach real time updates on the patient’s health. You don’t want to be in the middle of wearable data, you just want to be in the loop. Our technology makes it easy to stay abreast of your patients health in real time.
Separating the Role of the Coach: Human Connection + Automation
One of the most innovative aspects of TruNeura is how it redefines the role of the coach. Traditional coaching in functional medicine has always been a balancing act—on one hand, there’s the warm, human-to-human connection that inspires trust and accountability; on the other, there’s the repetitive, administrative burden of reminding patients to do the things they should already know. TruNeura addresses this by splitting the coaching role into two distinct functions:
The Human Element:
The personal connection between coach and patient remains paramount. This is the part of coaching that involves empathy, motivation and tailored guidance. It’s the coach who listens, encourages, and celebrates the patient’s victories.The Automated Element:
The tedious “follow-up” tasks—reminding patients to log their meals, track their sleep, or complete their daily exercise—are handled by the software. TruNeura sends automated reminders and collects objective data from connected devices and direct patient input. This ensures that the human coach can focus on high-value interactions rather than on administrative tasks.
By automating the “boring” part of coaching, TruNeura not only makes the process more efficient but also allows each coach to work with a larger patient base without compromising the quality of care. This is crucial in a world where personalized care is often limited by time and resources.
Transforming Care Delivery in Functional Medicine
The impact of these innovations is twofold. First, by closing the loop, TruNeura provides actionable feedback that empowers both patients and practitioners. When you can see, in real time, whether a patient is following your recommendations, you can intervene quickly if things are off track. Second, by separating the coaching role into human and automated functions, the platform frees up your valuable time. Instead of spending your evenings chasing down compliance data or manually logging patient activity, you have a clear, concise dashboard that tells you exactly what’s happening—at a glance.
This isn’t just a technical upgrade; it’s a fundamental transformation in how we deliver functional medicine. It allows clinics to scale without sacrificing the quality of care, ensuring that every patient receives the personalized attention they need. And in doing so, it directly addresses the longstanding “second practitioner problem”—making sure that when new team members come on board, they’re supported by an integrated system that maintains the highest standard of care.
The Future Is Re-Humanized Medicine
For too long, technology in healthcare has run the risk of dehumanizing care by replacing genuine human interaction with impersonal data. At TruNeura, we’re committed to reversing that trend. Our platform is designed to rehumanize medicine—enhancing the vital connection between doctor and patient, empowering coaches with real-time, actionable insights, and ensuring that our approach remains as compassionate as it is effective.
If you’re ready to experience the next generation of functional medicine—a system where data and empathy work hand in hand—then it’s time to explore TruNeura. Together, we can close the loop for coaching, transforming patient outcomes and redefining what it means to deliver truly personalized care.
Your patients deserve more than just numbers on a screen. They deserve a partner in their healing journey—and with TruNeura, you can be that partner.