5 Simple But Powerful Technologies Revolutionizing Healthcare
Have you ever wondered how delightful it would be if your doctor could dedicate some more time listening to you ?
Wouldn't you feel reassured if you knew that your 80-year-old grandfather's watch is monitoring his ECG (Electro Cardiograph) and blood oxygen levels 24/7 ?
Imagine being far away from the city on a vacation and being able to get your favorite doctor's advice.
Sounds a bit futuristic, doesn't it? But what if I tell you that the technologies to safeguard our health are increasingly getting popular, and could soon become a norm of you life.
Here are 5 simple , but powerful technologies that are revolutionizing the future of healthcare:
1. Using AI for Medical Paperwork
Those days are few when your doctor had to spend time jotting down symptoms and writing prescriptions.
Through application of artificial intelligence, and the speech recognition technology, physicians are increasingly being able automatize medical paperwork.
In return, they can spend more time listening to you and your problems.
Moreover, digital paper-work based on AI also eliminates the hurdles caused due to misplacement of physical records.
Data harvesting and research also becomes easier ultimately leading to better patient outcomes.
2. Integrated Devices and Services
You must have heard about Peloton , where you can remotely participate in fitness classes through live streaming.
You might have also discovered the Health app in your iPhone that allows to view your fitness data even from your watch and other applications.
If you are a fitness enthusiast , you might be even thinking of purchasing an apple watch to monitor your heart rates, blood oxygen levels and even ECGs ( Electrocardiograph).
Watches to even track blood sugar levels are under development.
According to some reports, even Google is planning to get into the health tech space.
Simple wearables like these have the potential to make keep us alert about our health situations . Emergencies can be prevented and doctors can monitor the changes far better.
For families with elderly members , these tools can be handy ,especially when you are far away from home.
Through interconnected devices and services, you now have the power to monitor your own health and seek help.
3. Healthcare Insurance That Fits Your Needs
According to a study in the United States, employees in a Fortune 100 company could save as much as $372 dollars a year by choosing a different health insurance plan.
Be it due to inertia, complex calculations or lack of right information, many people tend to choose the wrong health insurance as per the needs.
As a result, this lack of transparency and accurate information costs them more , sometimes even resulting in increased out-of-pockets payments and lesser services.
For example, in a study done by the Carnegie Melon University, it was found out that employees who picked plans with a deductible of $750 rather than $1,000, were in reality paying paying $528 to reduce their deductible by $250.
At the first glance, the cheaper deductible seemed like a wise option, but essentially it hurt them in the long term.
Different people have different health conditions, needs and family histories so they require different health plans. The best plans are not necessarily, the cheapest one, but the one that fits you the best.
Currently, with the evolution of data harvesting , companies are trying to make sure that health plans are more transparent and increasingly fit the need of the insurance holders.
Although its not something new, but need-specific health insurances with greater transparency can dramatically serve in reducing out-of- the-pocket healthcare spending.
4. Telemedicine
Although the idea of telemedicine came in application as early as the 1950s, it gained traction in the 21st century after a series of improvisations.
After COVID, the demand for telemedicine shot up exponentially, generating increased interest about its potential applications .
Telemedicine is an arena that can revolutionize digital and rural health ecosystems.
You can connect to you doctor even when you are far away on work or vacations, and even health professionals can utilize it for better knowledge sharing.
Definitely, telemedicine still requires improvisations, and has its own limitations, many believe that it can be transformational especially when it comes to chronic diseases and mental wellbeing.
It can help save time and money both for doctors as well as patients.
References:
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatment-tests-and-therapies/benefits-of-telemedicine
https://support.apple.com/en-sg/guide/watch/apd0d5d452ce/watchos