Health Innovations to look out for in future

Mobile Technology

By the end of 2019, it is estimated that about 2.5 billion people over the world will own a
smartphone device. This is a 0.4 billion increase since 2016. The number of global smartphone
owners is rapidly expanding, and the health care industry is quickly starting to take notice.

Health insurance providers have started to develop mobile applications that allow patients to
download an app from their smartphone’s app store and view their profile on their mobile device.
New claims can often be submitted using these mobile apps, and the patient can log queries and get
in touch with a representative at the company.

Many medical facilities have also adopted a similar approach to providing patients easier and more
convenient access to their own health data. Some facilities give patients the ability to sign into an
account on their mobile device to access their latest test results, book their next appointment with a
physician, or to view and pay their bill without having to visit the facility in person.

Wearable Technology

Another area in terms of mobile and portable technology that the health care industry is investing in
at the moment is wearable technology. These devices are no longer new to the world. Wearables
like the FitBit series of watches have become very popular among fitness enthusiasts. These devices
have given people the ability to track the number of steps they take each day. Apple’s latest Watch
device even contains a built-in heart rate monitor that can provide essential data regarding the
patient’s well-being.

In the medical industry, wearable technology now plays a crucial part in monitoring the health of
patients with certain medical conditions. The patient, along with their physician, can be provided
with an overview of certain health metrics. Many of these devices come with built-in features that
allow them to detect sudden changes in the patient's vital data that may signal risks like heart
attacks.

In one study, medical scientists explain that there are specific vitals and monitoring technology that
is currently considered a priority when it comes to the development of more advanced wearable
health devices, often referred to as WHDs. These include:

● Heart rate
● Electrocardiogram
● Blood glucose
● Capnography
● Motion evaluation
● Ambient parameters
● Respiration rate
● Blood pressure
● Body temperature
● Blood oxygen saturation

Furthermore, it should be noted that wearable devices do not only include simple watches and
wristbands anymore. Companies are starting to investigate other ways that they can provide “smart”
technology to patients with certain conditions that can easily integrate into their daily lives. An
excellent example would be a smart t-shirt that can provide several details on the patient’s vitals.

Cloud-Based Patient And Health Care Management Systems

In the past, physicians, specialists, and even medical facilities used to rely on file-based systems to
manually capture patient data, keep health records, and to provide referrals. This often led to
medical errors, billing problems, and many other issues between the physician or specialist and the
patient.

Then came technology and software systems – but there was still an important issue that many
facilities had faced. While locally stored electronic health records make it easier for the assistants to
get details on a specific patient for the physician, problems with the local servers or a crashing
computer often led to lost data.

Luckily, the development of cloud technology has made all of these problems go away. Cloud
technology offers medical facilities and opportunity to set up a software solution that would connect
all physicians, specialists, and even pharmacies that may form part of a particular health care group.
Patient data can then be easily shared among multiple facilities – even when they are not located in
the same building.

Cloud technology reduces the risk of medical errors by ensuring up-to-date patient data can easily
be provided to any physician, surgeon, or specialist that the patient will see. With cloud technology,
physicians and other authorized staff members can have their own accounts. User roles are then
implemented – ensuring that the logged in user only sees that they are authorized to see, and can
perform their functions without difficulty.

Many of the modern cloud software suites that are focused on the health care industry even give
patients access to a portal where health care records can be easily retrieved. Billing information can
often also be handled on these portals – the patient would be able to make a payment on a bill that
was sent to them or gets in touch with the medical facility to make appropriate payment
arrangements.

Advancements In Artificial Intelligence

Another important area that we need to take into consideration here is the advancements that are
being made in artificial intelligence. We have seen AI being implemented all over us in recent years.
The most common way that AI is becoming part of our daily lives would be through the

implementation of smart home and automated home systems. Alexa from Amazon is a good
example – this speaker can connect to multiple items around the house and control them. Siri,
installed on Apple iPhone smartphones, is another example of an artificial intelligent assistant.
In the medical industry, companies are also starting to rely on artificial intelligence for many
functions – and many organizations and facilities report significant savings in their financial
expenditure with the use of artificial intelligent technology.

One of the main ways that artificial intelligence is being used in the health care industry is to assist in
analyzing patient files. This can be incredibly useful for a physician. Advanced AI systems are now
able to monitor thousands of patient files simultaneously effectively. The entire health record of the
patient is taken into account – and some systems are so advanced that the AI can actually provide
recommendations to the physician that can assist in detecting possible risks and developing the
disease in the patient at an early stage.

With this in mind, AI now plays a role as an early diagnostics tool. When the AI is able to cross-
reference between various test data that has been uploaded on a patient’s file and finds some
suspicious details, the physician can run further tests and possibly come up with an early diagnosis
of a disease. With any type of disease, be it type 2 diabetes or something as serious as cancer, being
diagnosed early means the patient can be provided with a much higher chance of recovering from
the disease. Potential complications associated with the disease can often also be prevented more
effectively compared to the disease only being diagnosed at a later stage.

This is, of course, not the only way that artificial intelligence is now being used in the medical sector.
Robotic surgery has been introduced as well, where artificial intelligence is used to assist surgeons in
certain procedures that are performed on patients. It has been found that the combination of a
surgeon and AI robotics can actually assist in reducing the risk of complications during some types of
surgical procedures, ultimately reducing health care costs and providing a significant improvement in
patient safety and care.

3D Printing

Many companies in the health care sector have started to invest in 3D printing technology that can
help to improve the overall level of care offered to patients. The technology includes the use of cells
that are layered in order to produce certain structures.

In some areas, surgeons would use 3D printing technology to create replicas of certain organs in a
patient’s body. This helps the surgeon practice prior to performing a real-life operation on the
patient. The technology has also allowed for the manufacturing of certain surgical instruments, such
as hemostats, forceps, clamps, and more, to be made more efficient and ultimately reduces the
costs of these products.

Another important area where 3D printing is being used would be in prosthetics. While still in a
research phase, some researchers have shown that 3D printing technology is a potential option for
the manufacturing of prosthetic limbs that are custom made to provide a better fit to the patient.

Telehealth

Telehealth is also another area of the health care industry that is seeing a rapid growth right now.
Different types of telehealth services have already been introduced to the world, allowing patients
to be in touch with their physicians without the need for a frequent visit to their office.

The physician is able to easily connect with a patient in order to follow up after diagnosis and
treatment were provided. This helps the physician save a considerable amount of time on their side.
At the same time, health care costs are reduced on the patient's side.

Stem Cell Innovations

Stem cell was considered quite a mysterious topic about a decade ago. With all of the more recent
advancements in medical sciences, however, we are seeing many breakthroughs in this particular
area. Stem cells are now being used to assist in the treatment of many diseases. Just in the last three
years, we have seen scientists suggest that stem cells could help to reduce the need for dental
crowns, help cure leukemia and may even be a useful option to help people manage their diabetes
more effectively.

Conclusion

Following the Affordable Care Act, along with the joint venture formed by JP Morgan, along with
Berkshire Hathaway, we are sure to see a number of new innovations in the health care industry
start to show up as early as this year. We looked at some important innovations that patients are
looking forward to – with some already being surfaced in the industry, and others just about to be
introduced to the world.