Transformative technology in healthcare
The World Health Assembly in Geneva in May 2019 (where the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was discussed) focused on making “universal health coverage” a reality. Electronic health records (EHRs) have been the single biggest influence in the medical field in the last decade globally. They allow doctors to make more nuanced decisions by providing fuller, more holistic picture of patients’ health history. However, there is a need to upskill health care professionals to adapt to new technologies and to change the way in which medical students are trained.
There is one word to describe the use of technology in healthcare – potential. With the innovations and intelligent developments that are currently reshaping how practitioners engage with patients, and with diseases and medical facilities, medicine is sitting on the edge of a new frontier. A frontier that’s positively dripping with more than just the potential to change the patient’s future, but one that’s taking the beleaguered physician into account – the rising tide of physician burnout and suicide can potentially be arrested and addressed through the use of technology that transforms the system, and supports the physician.
Universal Health Coverage
According to the World Health Organization, at least half of the world’s population doesn’t have full coverage of essential health services, and more than 100 million people are moving into extreme poverty because of their healthcare costs. There is a movement amidst the UN member states to try and achieve universal health coverage by 2030 so that these people, and the world, can overcome persistent healthcare challenges. This movement is hugely beneficial to the world because the more people that can work, that can contribute meaningfully to society, the better that society is. Money circulates, growth accumulates and economies rise off the backs of the healthy.
This mandate is complex to achieve and requires significant investment by public and private sector alike, but technology is playing a powerful role in shifting these benchmarks and changing this future.
The EHR
Electronic Health Records (EHRs) were designed to achieve numerous objectives such as: improving the quality of care through the reduction of medical errors; streamlined communication about patient information; accessible information sharing across healthcare providers and practitioners; and the collation of healthcare information to further research and education. EHRs have been in play for some time, and research is emerging around their successes and how they are supporting physicians in delivering exceptional patient care.
A recent study undertaken by BMC Health Services Research found that the EHR can ignite collaboration within clinical environments, but that there are still some changes that have to take place in order for this to be fully realised. Collaboration across discipline and clinic is a complex process, and further research has found that a lack of efficient system implementation is translating the potential of EHR into physician burnout. Technology can transform these systems, but the varied results from EHR implementations showcase how it must be done with efficiency and physician reality at its heart.
The trends that transform
While universal healthcare and EHR are still finding their feet, there are innovations emerging that fill the gaps and provide essential support to physician and patient alike. These are some of the most extraordinary:
- Artificial intelligence (AI) – Think that AI in medical care is a futuristic dream, think again. Already AI has been implemented into radiology platforms and is providing overworked and exhausted radiologists with a second pair of eyes that never get tired. Considering that radiologists interpret images every 3-4 seconds, eight hours a day, AI is a huge support in helping busy physicians prioritise urgent cases and improve patient care. This is one space that’s seeing significant development and investment and will likely play a huge role in reducing pressures and transforming medicine.
- Telehealth – this is a remarkable field that saw a notable upswing in 2020 during the global pandemic. Thanks to virtual tools, connectivity and the need for social distancing, telehealth underwent a revolution and is now being used to transform healthcare for people globally, while minimising the transmission of the disease. Telehealth has numerous applications beyond the virus and has already proven itself invaluable in providing healthcare to people in remote and rural areas with limited access to medical support.
- Wearable technology – there have been some interesting movements in the wearable field that allow for medical practitioners to track people and their vital signs from any location. From monitoring the elderly to managing diabetes and heart conditions, wearables can be used to minimise patient risk while improving physician care. These devices are constantly evolving to provide detailed inputs that can potentially prevent a serious incident before it happens, reducing the cost to the healthcare system and to patient life.
These are just some of the trends in technology that are shaping medical care and the future. Some may yet prove to hamper physician productivity and wellbeing, but the ultimate goal is to implement solutions that help every human achieve optimum health while reducing the impact on the system and the physician.