How is technology disrupting the healthcare industry?

Stethoscope next to a computer

Technology is changing the way healthcare providers assist patients through telemedicine, remote monitoring, advanced treatments, 3-D printing, and record-keeping.

Technology has the potential to completely revolutionize healthcare, but the industry is slow to modern advances. This is largely due to cultural and governance factors within the industry.

With the changes the new technologies listed below promise, they’ll likely cause significant disruption to the industry as a whole upon adoption.

Note: Getting the most out of new tech usually involves a cultural shift in your workplace. Gradual adoption with plenty of training is often the most efficient route.

5 ways technology is revolutionizing healthcare

The following technologies show promise for revolutionizing healthcare:

1. Telemedicine

Instead of meeting with a doctor face-to-face, patients are able to hold doctor visits over the phone, allowing them to get diagnoses and prescriptions, without having to leave home. In addition, doctors are able to connect with specialists remotely, saving time and expenses of in-person visits.

2. Remote monitoring

Wearable devices make use of IoT technologies to help healthcare providers keep an eye on their patients. Sensors can transmit data on heart rate, temperature, blood pressure, patient movements, and so forth, making nurses’ jobs much easier. IoT also transforms different industries through remote monitoring.

Note: IoT sensors can also help hospitals improve the reliability of their equipment and reduce facilities management costs.

3. Advanced treatments

New technology enables people to receive treatments in ways that would normally require more painful or risky methods. For instance, digital therapeutics, called “digiceuticals,” use software to help treat conditions such as high blood pressure without the use of drugs.

4. 3-D printing

3-D printing has seen significant advances in recent years, and it has serious implications for the healthcare industry. This technology has been used to personalize prosthetics, create new body tissue, and accomplish other medical tasks.

5. Record-keeping and administration

Only 35% of healthcare providers in the United States have adopted electronic medical recordkeeping, but it has the potential to improve healthcare throughout the nation. Not only can records be kept digitally, but also check-in kiosks at hospitals make recordkeeping and administration much easier and more reliable for providers.

Bringing healthcare into the modern age

The process of bringing this new technology into more common use will probably involve disrupting the overall culture present in the healthcare industry. Likely, it will take efforts from healthcare organizations, legislators, and forward-thinking providers to increase the adoption of these technologies and bring medical care into the modern era.

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