The healthcare industry has made steady progress when it comes to research and studies conducted over the last decade. But has the technology and development part fared as well as research? Interestingly, there have been many technological advancements and trends that emerged in the health industry in the past decade. Some of these trends became part of mainstream medicine, while others remained obscure and relatively unknown to many.
Here, we will rediscover some interesting tech trends in the health industry in the past decade.
Improved Healthcare Access for People
There has been a marked increase in healthcare access improvement for people not just in the US, but also in neighboring countries in South America and Europe. One of the notable technologies is telemedicine, which has helped spread the accessibility of modern medicine to remote areas or areas with limited medical facilities. Advances in telecommunication have also greatly influenced the quality of medical services people receive. Being able to greatly reduce appointment wait times and increase the interaction time of patients with their doctors, according to Erin Reese MD, are made possible by telemedicine technology. Communication through chat, phone, email, and video call or chat platforms have made it possible for patients to reach their physicians between office visits. This has greatly improved health status monitoring, rehabilitation, and intervention practices, which greatly benefit people across the country and the whole world.
Game-Changing Role of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
AI technology has played a key role in the advancement of technologies in various industries around us. In the field of medicine and healthcare, AI has played an important role in augmenting the capabilities of doctors and health professionals. Various healthcare applications and programs used in hospitals, clinics, and other medical facilities have incorporated AI technology to improve information processing and decision-making in the healthcare setting. The AI-capable applications used in medical practice can help improve the speed and accuracy of various diagnoses due to efficient data collection and smart inputs and suggestions provided by AI programs. AI has also made the analytical process more efficient when it comes to using the best approach for early intervention and treatment.
Fast and safe exploration of chemical and biological processes and interactions through machine learning algorithms of AI has significantly improved the drug discovery process and facilitated the fast release of drugs to the market.
Virtual and Augmented Reality Solutions
What seemed like the stuff of sci-fi movies a few decades back, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies are now a reality and they have found remarkable use in medicine and healthcare practices. AR and VR technologies have further advanced the course of medical and health care education by presenting a more visually realistic representation of medical concepts. Such technologies are showing serious promise in treating patients with cognitive impairments and disorders such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. In tandem with AI technology, AR and VR can help doctors recreate virtual scenarios from real-world data and formulate effective plans for medical procedures.
Health Record Digitization and Cloud Storage
We have witnessed paperless processing of socio-economic transactions and the past decade has made great strides in improving the way medical records are generated and stored. Converting physical documents of patient medical records to digital records, having a digital and online record generation for patients, and storing voluminous medical records are great technological achievements that make record-keeping more efficient and faster. Patients, medical practitioners, and health-related industries are also assured that the digital generation and storage of patient records and valuable medical information comply with the provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
Many of us may not be keenly aware of the advances in medical and healthcare technology, but statistical data will show a significant improvement in recoveries and improved quality of life in various patients worldwide to useful tech trends. Some of these technologies work behind-the-scenes and are not known to the public, while some are integrated into medical processes and procedures (for example continuous glucose monitors). With such great developments in the recent decade, it is exciting to see what lies ahead in the next decade when it comes to tech trends in the medical and health industries.