Why Dr Jane Semugga believes Personal Health Pathways helps her patients take charge of their health

"I think Personal Health Pathways is a brilliant innovation on the part of Discovery Health for Discovery Health Medical Scheme members," says GP, Dr Jane Semugga. "The platform doesn't just support my work as a doctor, it also helps patients feel supported by the Scheme, and more in control of their own health."

Personal Health Pathways has become an important part of consultations with her Discovery Health Medical Scheme patients.

She says, "I call Personal Health Pathways my assistant because there's only so much I can discuss in the 15 minutes I have with each patient. If I want to reinforce an important health message, I enlist the help of Personal Health Pathways. It supports my patients in following through with the health actions that will improve their wellbeing."

For Dr Semugga, the ability to prescribe Personal Health Pathways for her patients (which means she encourages them to activate this platform in their Discovery Health app) and to endorse the health actions in their journey strengthens the doctor-patient relationship. It reinforces important health messages and encourages patients to complete the preventive screenings they need at the right time. By rewarding them for doing so, Personal Health Pathways helps them to take a more active role in managing their health.

A partnership that benefits everyone

Dr Semugga believes one of Personal Health Pathways' greatest strengths is that it brings patients, doctors and their medical aid together around the same goal.

"The patient feels supported by both their doctor and their medical aid. The extra funds help take some of the burden off paying for over-the-counter medicines or another visit to the doctor." "Patients feel seen. They feel their medical aid is actively supporting them to manage their health, rather than simply funding treatment when they become ill."

"I would absolutely recommend that other general practitioners incorporate Personal Health Pathways into their practices in treating their Discovery Health Medical Scheme member patients. It reinforces the advice we're already giving patients and makes them far more likely to follow through."

"The financial rewards certainly help patients, but that's only part of the story. The real benefit is that when patients follow their recommended health actions, serious conditions can be diagnosed earlier and treatment can begin sooner. Cancers such as cervical cancer and colon cancer can be avoided entirely through screening, and where cancers are picked up early, they are far more manageable with far better outcomes. That's where the real value of Personal Health Pathways lies. It has life-changing and life-saving potential."

Better collaboration leads to better care

Dr Semugga says Personal Health Pathways together with Discovery HealthID (which doctors access Pathways through for each patient) also makes it easier for healthcare professionals to work together and coordinate patient care.

"I had a patient with type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance whose Personal Health Pathway recommended a Health Check. The Health Check identified that her body mass index was too high. Because carrying excess weight can make both conditions more difficult to manage, it was important that we intervened early. She started seeing a dietitian, an endocrinologist and a psychologist."

"When she came to see me, there were parts of her medical history she couldn't remember. Through Discovery HealthID, I could access that information and see which other healthcare professionals were treating her. It made it much easier for us to work together, discuss her care and make sure we were all working towards the same outcome."

"With the right treatment and support, she has lost a significant amount of weight, helping improve her diabetes and insulin resistance, while reducing her long-term health risks." "She was also due for a mammogram, so I endorsed that health action through her Personal Health Pathway. She could then earn funds into her Personal Health Fund to help cover other day-to-day healthcare costs."

A tool that reinforces important health messages

"One of the biggest challenges doctors face in general practice is that patients often don't follow through on medical advice once they leave the consulting room," says Dr Semugga.

"I might tell a patient that they need to go for a cervical cancer screening - a pap smear or HPV test. They'll acknowledge me, but many don't go on to book the appointment to have the check done soon afterwards. If their Personal Health Pathway recommends the same screening, my message is reinforced. They're much more likely to make the booking, and they earn rewards and funds into their Personal Health Fund for completing this health action within the set deadline."

Dr Semugga can endorse each patient's recommended health actions (Personal Health Pathways offers up to two at a time, to meet by a set date) through Discovery HealthID (Discovery's electronic health record).

"Personal Health Pathways makes compliance better. It makes information dissemination better. And it also gives patients a deadline for completing their recommended actions, so they're less likely to postpone important screenings indefinitely - as most want to earn rewards available and funds into their Personal Health Fund. The more they engage the more they see the value of engaging, with positive impact on their health and well-being - a win-win for me and them."

Supporting patients before they need more care

Personal Health Pathways launched on the Discovery Health app on 1 January 2026. Dr Semugga finds that the platform is especially useful for her many patients who need support for their mental health.

"Historically, I saw many young people struggling with poor mental health, but now I'm seeing increasing numbers of middle-aged patients on this front too," she explains.

"If a patient comes to see me regularly for their mental health, I'll encourage them to activate Personal Health Pathways and complete their recommended health actions. They benefit in two ways. They complete important preventive screenings, and they earn funds into their Personal Health Fund. They can choose to use these funds to pay for everyday care related to their mental health, whether consultations or medicines they need. This means patients can access added funds to pay for their everyday care, through engagement in Personal Health Pathways and their Personal Health Fund."

Better informed, more empowered patients

Dr Semugga has also noticed that Personal Health Pathways encourages patients to become more involved in their own healthcare, empowering them to take more responsibility.

"When patients receive a recommended next best health action, they'll often read about it first and then come back to me with questions. That gives me the opportunity to address their concerns before they've even had the screening or procedure."

"People don't want one-size-fits-all messaging. They want something personalised that says, 'This is for you. This understands you and your unique health journey. I thought about you. This fits your health needs for these reasons.' And, Personal Health Pathways offers just this."

"Discovery Health Medical Scheme members are also fortunate on another front when it comes to being more empowered about their health and wellbeing: they can streamline their healthcare through the Discovery Health App. They can access Personal Health Pathways, find healthcare providers in their network and book appointments easily. Everything happens in one place, making healthcare easier to manage."

What is Personal Health Pathways? What is the Personal Health Fund?

Personal Health Pathways is a free tool available to adult DHMS members via the Discovery Health app. It provides personalised, real-time health recommendations based on each member's unique profile. As a member's health journey evolves, so does their pathway, continuously updating based on their specific health status, risk profile and engagement patterns and dynamically adjusting as new health data become available.

- Personal Health Pathways combines artificial intelligence, predictive analytics and behavioural science. The platform uses more than 50 million life years of health claims and clinical data, along with nearly 30 million life years of exercise and lifestyle data gathered through Vitality in South Africa, to recommend actions that have the greatest potential to improve health outcomes.

Each member's Personal Health Pathways cycle provides up to two clinical actions (which must be completed by a set date, and can be deferred to a later deadline) and one weekly exercise goal (which, for Vitality members, is the same as their weekly Vitality Active Rewards Goal).

Members can also choose to take on challenges. Challenges are exciting, goal-driven health journeys (from Better Health Challenges to Move More and Sleep Well challenges which run over a few weeks), each made up of simple, actionable steps, designed to help you build healthy habits and achieve meaningful results.

Members who complete their health actions and achieve their weekly exercise goals earn rewards (through Discovery Health) for engaging, including shopping vouchers, Ðiscovery Miles and instant rewards. Those Scheme members who are also Vitality members earn personalised rewards through Personal Health Pathways in addition to their Vitality rewards.

Members also earn up to R500 into their Personal Health Fund (through Discovery Health Medical Scheme) for each completed action. The funds accumulated in the Personal Health Fund can be used for day-to-day medical expenses, including GP and specialist consultations, medicine, radiology and pathology. In 2026, you can earn up to R12,000 per policy in the Personal Health Fund, depending on your chosen plan. You can also earn up to R500 for each recommended Personal Health Pathway action you complete, up to a maximum of R3,000 per adult and R1,500 per child.