Health Technology, Digital Healthcare
Article | September 8, 2023
Over the last couple of years, the healthcare industry has witnessed significant technological advancements transforming numerous procedures and treatments, ranging from magnetic resonance imaging scanners and radiotherapy to antibiotics and anesthetics.
In addition, the introduction of novel technologies (new pharmaceuticals and treatments, new equipment, new social media support for healthcare, etc.) has further provided air to the fire for innovation in the sector, encouraging healthcare providers to upgrade their technological infrastructure.
Medical Computers Paving the Way in Healthcare
Use of modern technology, such as medical computers, is becoming more and more crucial in healthcare institutions, including hospitals, clinics, and specialized treatment centers. These computers are used in hospitals for a variety of purposes, from better laparoscopic, minimally invasive surgical techniques used by surgeons to patient tracking and health monitoring gadgets.
Medical computers are becoming more prevalent as they help medical professionals make faster, more reliable, and more accurate decisions. Additionally, they enable the emergence of new data, integrate advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, and enhance decision-making processes, which are particularly crucial when it comes to medical diagnostics and treatment. New computer and technology solutions in the healthcare sector are enabling a wide range of outcomes that were previously unimaginable. They assist medical practitioners in both data collection and data interpretation, enabling them to make decisions that are thoroughly informed by insight. Here are some of the applications that have experienced immense transformation in recent years
Hospital Information Systems
Medical Personnel and Staff Management
Data Analysis in Medicine
Medical Imaging
Computer-assisted Therapy
Laboratory Computing
Critical Patient Care
Computer Assisted Decision-making (CMD)
Patient Check-In and Status
Growing Adoption Encouraging Product Launches
With technologies like medical computers becoming essential for processing numerous day-to-day operations in the healthcare industry, the need for these computers is growing at a rapid pace. Hence, a number of medical equipment providers are emphasizing on offering cutting-edge solutions to modern healthcare facilities.
For instance, in 2021, American Portwell Technology, Inc., a world-leading innovator of the Industrial PC, unveiled two certification-ready all-in-one medical computers - MEDS-P2410-P200 (23.8″) and MEDS-P2210-P200 (21.5″) with features such as true-flat capacitive touchscreen and optional hot-swappable batteries.
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Health Technology, Digital Healthcare
Article | September 7, 2023
Artificial Intelligence or AI has attained continuous evolution over the years and witnessed widespread adoption across major industries of the globe. The Forbes report of December 2021mentions that the number of AI startups since 2000 has increased 14 times, and investments in AI startups have grown six times. It underlines the fact that the AI industry, powered by its path-breaking developments and innovations, has always been an attractive and trending option in the market.
Within a very few years, AI has taken over different segments of healthcare like wellness, early detection, diagnosis, decision making, treatment, research, training, public health functions (surveillance and outbreak response), virtual care etc. A study by Accenture claims that AI-enabled devices and gadgets meet 20% of the clinical demands, and this has reduced the unnecessary visits to hospitals by a great number.
Applications of AI in healthcare is broadly categorised into 3 segments, namely, Patient-oriented AI; Clinician-oriented AI; and Administrative-oriented AI. The transformative role of AI in healthcare is undeniable, as it scripts new journey for patients and practitioners, alike.
According to Healthcare IT News, 63% of the research subjects agree to the observation that the devices and machinery enabled by AI have provided excellent value to the specialty healthcare divisions like radiology, generic pharmacy, pathology, etc.
The rapid growth of AI in highly delicate domains like healthcare calls for great promise to accelerate diagnosis and treatment. At the same time, it also puts ethics, patient safety and privacy concerns at the heart of it; thereby calling for a framework of governance. Gartner report of July 2019 predicted the application of AI in more than 75% of the healthcare delivery organizations (HDOs) around the globe.
Since most of these HDOs are new to adopting and applying AI-enabled machinery and services, AI governance is crucial to prevent the actions that may lead to errors, misjudgements and further chaos. Moreover, the degree of variance in the application of AI is high, and therefore it is not advised to implement the AI mechanisms without proper guidance or governance.
From AI-enabled smart bands to pacemakers, the range of devices and gadgets offered by the AI industry is simply remarkable. The implementation of AI in the healthcare sector has proven to be highly effective in drastically reducing the scope of slipups. Moreover, AI has also facilitated early detection of illness with the help of daily use gadgets and devices in a smart way.
At this juncture, it is equally important to create data governance framework that ensure ethical principles are applied to patient, providers and payers’ data. Further, AI initiatives by healthcare providers should be created using transparent protocols, auditable methodologies and metadata. These technologies should do no harm, reduce biases and help patients make informed decisions about their care.
A significant part of AI governance also lies in change management. To build trust towards AI’s adoption across the healthcare ecosystem, there should be a dialogue between clinicians, scientists, technologist and end-users. Such discussions will address the opportunities, value and investment, including concerns across the stakeholders.
In fact, prominent think tanks suggest healthcare providers to establish an AI Governance Council to monitor the value, investment and use of strategic AI capabilities. Some of the crucial roles and responsibilities for the Council include addressing legal and regulatory compliance; clinical evaluations; ethical usage guidelines and organisational deployment of AI across the system.
AI is indeed a revolutionary technology that has huge surprises up its sleeves for the future. But exploring new frontiers comes with its fair share of challenges. Establishing appropriate governance over AI implementation and initiating a conversation around the ethical implications and regulations as well, will play a fundamental role in the introduction and scale-up of AI in healthcare.
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Healthtech Security
Article | November 29, 2023
It’s no secret now that healthcare is an in-demand field. Today, business leaders need modern and intelligent decision-making solutions for their customers and clients. They must also focus on the right investment areas and learn the tricks for investing, spending, and setting goals for revenue generation to accelerate business.
With continuous developments in the healthcare sector, integrating AI into processes can help increase ROI. Therefore, if you, like any other business leader, are looking for solutions to empower your services and products in the healthcare domain, this article will help you through AI’s ultimate use cases and churn out a higher ROI.
What’s with AI in Healthcare at Present?
AI’s role in healthcare is evolving and enhancing traditional business operations, particularly marketing. According to a study by IBM, 71% of customers expect real-time communication. Thus, global demand is fueling the rising adoption of AI marketing solutions.
The effects of AI in healthcare are evident. Gartner reports increased marketing efficiency and effectiveness (86%), improved decision-making (71%), better data analysis and new insights (79%). Global AI spending will rise from $450 million in 2019 to over $28 billion by 2024 is not surprising.
Similar and further studies are ongoing on various use cases of AI in healthcare at scale. What are the efficient use cases of AI that will help healthcare businesses boost their ROI? Let’s find out.
How is AI Applied in Healthcare?
The promising applications of AI in healthcare to improve outcomes are very intriguing. While there is still much to achieve in the AI-dependent healthcare business, there is sufficient potential that tech companies are willing to invest in AI-powered tools and solutions.
Let’s examine the potential examples of AI in healthcare to prepare and support business strategies accordingly and foster higher ROI generation.
Predictive Analytics
AI-based predictive analytics impacts a business by automating administrative tasks, predicting sales outcomes for a year, customers’ behavior and making strategies accordingly. According to a Forbes study, AI-based predictive analytics can save businesses $18 billion in tasks, expenses, and pricing.
To understand this, one example of using AI to automate admin tasks is a collaboration between the Cleveland Clinic and IBM. Cleveland Clinic uses IBM’s Watson to mine big data and provides personalized services for customers and clients on marketing deeds.
Some of the practical applications of AI and predictive analytics in healthcare are:
Monitoring market trends to maximize marketing efforts
Organizing datasets
Creating marketing campaigns tailored to each demographic-based client
Mining collective data for future decision-making
Fraud Prevention
AmerisourceBergen Corp detects fraud and misleading business operations through AI. A sales account team conducts audits with AI to detect usual lea and queries to prevent hefty expenses for businesses.
The example explains that implementing AI in your process will help detect any significant fraud attempts inside your business operation. This will help your business save huge expenditures.
Boost Sales
By putting down false leads, AI helps in maximizing sales numbers, resulting in significant ROI generation. For example, AI transforms data into personalized data, which reduces the cost of operations.
Chatbots
Most healthcare businesses leverage chatbots on their websites to engage more and more customers and boost engagement. In this way, businesses tend to gain multiple leads and convert them into clients by providing the best marketing solutions.
Chatbots are fruitful for AI start-ups in healthcare—small businesses can deploy AI to their websites. By doing so, they can save millions in administrative costs and attract numerous leads.
The most prominent examples of AI in healthcare hail from giant tech titans such as IBM, Amazon, and Microsoft. They are assisting healthcare providers with AI to create and deploy digital-human employees.
Segmentation of Marketing Targets
Is your target audience not responding to your marketing campaigns (for example, by not clicking a link, subscribing or unsubscribing to a newsletter, or not registering for a medical event)? If that's the case, how should you go ahead?
Using AI-based tools allows your marketing to easily identify target behaviors and reactions based on the type of marketing actions to be carried out. Analyzing these actions can help segment targets based on your company's marketing objectives.
The most significant development took place in April 2022, when Amazon Alexa became fully HIPAA compliant. It works with health developers and service providers that manage protected information for customers.
AI Leads to Data Modernization
It’s all about the data—not any data!
There’s a precise association between AI and data management, resulting in data modernization. According to a Cognizant research study, healthcare leaders have made significant progress in modernizing their data. In contrast, most upcoming businesses are expecting to do so by 2024.
The maximum acceleration of AI in modernizing data will be seen in the manufacturing and marketing of healthcare products and services, respectively. It is because AI helps to churn data easily. The accessibility of data, in particular, becomes simpler with automation than doing it manually, which generates a massive amount of data. Such effects of AI in healthcare can be one of the prime reasons for the higher ROI of your business in the future.
“There has never been a greater need for skilled analytic talent in health care. Because AI is becoming more strategic, organizations must ensure access to this skill set, either by growing their analytic teams or seeking out experienced partners."
Steve Griffiths, CEO of Optum Enterprise Analytics
AI Expenditure is on the Rise
McKinsey says that by 2025, the use of AI in healthcare will be widespread, resulting in significant expenditure by global healthcare leaders.
AI is a significant concern for healthcare decision-makers, investors, and innovators as customers extensively engage and react to AI-powered services and solutions. AI is constantly bringing improvements to almost all processes, including cost savings, management of services and products, and monitoring of multiple operations. Even small businesses in the healthcare industry are proactively investing in AI applications to match steps with the current wave of innovation in healthcare services.
Accelerate ROI Using AI
AI in healthcare is becoming one of the prime responsible technologies for accelerating ROI. Technology can eradicate multiple business growth challenges. Let’s find out how.
Enhanced Performance
As previously stated, use cases of AI in healthcare can relieve stress on employees. This would allow them to devote their time to more value-added marketing activities to churn more ROI.
Emphasize Cost-Effectiveness
Most of the businesses associated with healthcare are concerned about the costs involved. With AI, they now develop policies to spend less on non-essential activities and necessitate profit-oriented actions.
"We believe in the potential of AI to deliver insights and operational efficiencies that unlock better health-care performance."
Robert Musslewhite, CEO at OptumInsight
Frequently Asked Questions
How is AI used in healthcare?
AI in healthcare automates and predicts processes by analyzing data throughout. It is used to predict potential customers, improve business management workflows, and manufacture medical products.
How does AI drive growth in the healthcare industry?
AI drives business growth by improving the ability to understand better day-to-day customer patterns and needs based on services and products.
How is AI changing the Healthcare industry?
AI applications in healthcare have demonstrated their potential to improve analytics and data management and assist service providers in making timely medical decisions.
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Article | December 9, 2020
The pandemic-fueled technology adoption has enabled the healthcare industry to address the challenges, including cybersecurity, telehealth, invoicing and payment processing, patient experience, effective payment model, and big data. The responses to the unusual COVID-19 pandemic has sped up the adoption of new digital technologies in the industry. It has also fueled advancements in health technology. From the start of 2020, these advancements transformed the healthcare industry into a next-gen one by accelerating digitization of their internal and external operations by two to three years.
This surprising impact of technology in the healthcare industry has brought out unexpected competition between the key players in the B2B healthcare market. Whatever the field, adapting yourself to modern changes is the best strategy to thrive. Get yourself updated according to the changes or get yourself outdated is the new norm in the healthcare industry.
The following trends and advancements in technology in the healthcare industry due to the pandemic in 2020 show that healthcare providers are always searching for new ways to improve their productivity, performance, and efficiency. These were the need of the hour during the pandemic, for them to surge ahead of their competitors.
• Telemedicine
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare
• The Internet of Medical Things (IoMT)
• Supply chain management technology
• Privacy issues
• AR/VR/MR in Healthcare
• Blockchain
• Digital marketing trends in healthcare
This article looks into the major innovations, advancements, and trends brought out by the global pandemic in 2020 in the healthcare industry.
Pandemic-fueled Advancements
One of the biggest challenges faced by the healthcare industry in the US today is its digital capacity to effectively engage consumers and make them stay healthy. This can include helping people to prevent getting infected by various diseases such as COVID-19 and effectively managing various other chronic conditions. This is where technology in the healthcare industry has a major role to play.
Due to the latest advancements in technology, the healthcare industry was already evolving but the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this transformation dramatically. McKinsey reports that US$250 billion was spent on technology in the US healthcare industry to shift the industry into a virtual care model in the wake of the pandemic. Also, a study by FAIR Health, a non-profit group, says the increase in telehealth claims in the US is 4,000% in 2020.
Here’s a detailed look into the above-mentioned advancements, innovations or trends brought out by the pandemic in the industry.
Telemedicine
Had the world ever thought that it would be possible one day for doctors to remotely examine the health of patients via a smartphone or a computer? Telemedicine, a new trend in technology in the healthcare industry, addresses many challenges in the industry. Improved technology in the industry has made telemedicine easier, even for people, who are not computer savvy. Telehealth services are now provided through different telemedicine apps.
In the light of the pandemic, rather than in-person visits, 43.5% of primary medical visits were done using telehealth methods in April 2020 in the US. The major benefit of telemedicine is that it reduces contact between healthcare workers, patients, and other patients. This reduces the chances of the spread of infectious diseases.
Reports say that 71% of Americans considered telemedicine useful at the beginning of the pandemic. This trend is expected to continue in the coming years too. With the pandemic, telemedicine saw an immediate boom compared to previous years. This boom in telehealth is projected to break US$185.6 billion by 2026.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare
Artificial intelligence, a new trend and advancement in technology in the healthcare industry, had a critical role in fighting the pandemic. AI played a major role in areas such as pandemic detection, vaccine development, facial recognition with masks, thermal screening, and analyzing CT scans. AI is becoming the new operating technology in the healthcare industry.
Major AI healthcare applications
Healthcare providers will benefit a lot from AI-driven tools as AI technology in the healthcare industry has become a transformational force. Machine learning algorithms and software in AI will revolutionize the use of technology in the healthcare industry and the science of healthcare in the coming years too. AI will unify machines and humans through the brain. Some of the AI technologies in the healthcare industry, which are very relevant, are machine learning, natural language processing (NLP), rule-based expert systems, physical robots, diagnostic and treatment, patient engagement and adherence, and administrative applications.
Benefits of AI in healthcare and statistics
AI addresses many challenges that present technology in the healthcare industry cannot tackle. Better data-driven decisions, increased disease diagnosis efficiency, reduced treatment time, easy integration of information, reduced costs, increased patient satisfaction, fewer errors, and easier payment options are some of the benefits AI-assisted technology in the healthcare industry can provide.
According to an analysis by Accenture, by 2026, clinical AI health applications are expected to create approximately US$150 billion for the US healthcare economy as annual savings. Also, the US AI health market is expected to reach around US$6.6 billion by 2021.
The Internet of Medical Things (IoMT)
Nowadays, medical interactions involve some sort of equipment or device; it can be a glucose monitor, blood pressure monitor, or even an MRI scanner. It may not be a surprise now that, according to a 2020 Deloitte report, the available number of medical technologies are around 50,000. The internet-connected devices, which are known as IoMT tools, are transforming the healthcare and technology in the healthcare industry.
What Is IoMT?
The connected infrastructure of software applications, medical devices, and health systems and services are the IoMT. This has emerged by combining IoT development with telehealth technologies and telemedicine.
Potential of IoMT in healthcare and statistics
Lower costs for care, fewer mistakes, and more accurate diagnosis are the potential capabilities of IoMT. IoMT paired with various smartphone applications allows patients to send information regarding their health to doctors and get treated for diseases. This type of technology-driven healthcare not only improves patient experiences but also reduces the cost. IoMT, the new trend in technology in the healthcare industry, also has a positive effect on drug management.
According to Goldman Sachs, IoMT will save US$300 billion annually in the healthcare industry. AllTheResearch expects that the global IoMT market value will reach US$254.2 billion from US$44.5 billion in 2018.
Supply chain management technology in the healthcare industry
Utilizing advanced supply chain management technology in the healthcare industry enables healthcare providers to reach the right patients with the right product at the right time. Digitalized supply chain management also makes healthcare organizations improve provider-patient connectedness, data flow and analytics, regulatory compliance, and asset tracking.
A range of challenges faced by healthcare providers prompts you to digitalize supply chain networks, using the latest technologies in the healthcare industry. Advanced supply chain management technology will help you optimize costs, reduce unnecessary variation due to error and variability, enhance patient care, engagement, and delivery, and address new value-creation priorities.
According to reports from market researchers, global healthcare supply chain management technology is expected to reach US$3.3 billion in 2025 from US$2.2 billion in 2020.
Privacy issues
Privacy is a serious concern in technology in the healthcare industry, especially because of HIPAA compliance in 2020. Although data and information of patients can be efficiently stored and retrieved through cloud computing, complying with the strict electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) is difficult.
While electronic health records and sensor networks, and advancements in other technologies in the healthcare industry will surely improve the quality of healthcare by reducing medical errors and costs, associated security and privacy are challenges to be addressed. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association estimated that stolen or lost PHI may cost the US healthcare industry approximately US$7 billion annually.
To solve these issues, hospitals, and other healthcare providers have to stop using outdated technology and adopt state-of-the-art technologies without violating HIPAA. Encryption technology in the healthcare industry is the best option and healthcare providers should start using it to ensure the privacy of patients.
AR, VR, and MR in Healthcare
Virtual (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are important technologies in the healthcare industry to enhance and ensure the quality of telemedicine, especially during the period of the pandemic. The pandemic has made these technologies more popular and the trend is expected to continue in the future too. Both of these technologies in the healthcare industry are used to enhance patient and provider visits and even to educate medical students.
AR and VR also have the potential to help stroke victims overcome deficiencies, assist in robotic surgeries, educate patients before surgeries, facilitate easy surgical planning, help patients with PTSD, and reduce anxiety in children during a painful procedure or blood tests. Mixed reality (MR) is the mixed use of both VR and MR in a patient’s healthcare process and is also gaining popularity.
Blockchain
Blockchain is a trend which is expected to revolutionize technology in the healthcare industry. Using blockchain or digital ledgers will enable you to securely distribute transaction records to patients with improved data security. Along with other trends such as cloud computing and IoMT, blockchain also offers portability, accessibility, and high security. One of the greatest benefits of blockchain technology in the healthcare industry is interoperability.
As blockchain provides full visibility through a digital ledger, it improves integrity and transparency. Blockchain technology in the healthcare industry is beneficial to handle clinical study information, patient wearable data, and patient records.
Scope of blockchain technology in the healthcare industry
Various statistics on blockchain technology in the healthcare industry expect a wide scope for this technology. The global blockchain technology market in the healthcare industry is projected to cross US500 million by 2022.
Digital marketing trends in healthcare
Digital marketing technology in the healthcare industry has been revolutionized as new trends were set by the pandemic in 2020. As the world shrunk to online mode during the pandemic period, the following healthcare digital marketing trends emerged.
Content marketing
The smartest way to attract new patients to your service is content marketing and educational content. 2020 is the time where the content truly emerged as king. Educational content is vital in the healthcare space because everyone always tries to learn new things. It can be a trick or tips about the latest technological advancements, general industry news, or new diagnostic options.
Mobile responsive websites
Another important digital marketing technology in the healthcare industry is making an attractive website, which also must be mobile responsive. In this modern world of technology, everyone wants to access every facility at their fingertips. So, if your website is not mobile responsive, you won’t get traffic to your website easily.
Along with these two trending digital marketing technologies in the healthcare industry, some of the other trends are:
• Video marketing
• Multichannel initiatives and customer touchpoints
• Online reputation
• Powerful presence on social media channels
• Location-based SEO
The essential trends and advancements in technology in the healthcare industry depicting the future of healthcare are machine learning, artificial intelligence, and data science along with a focus on effective healthcare digital marketing technology and strategy. The pandemic fueled B2B healthcare technology will make the industry evolve every year and go on resolving new challenges that arise.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is technology important to the healthcare industry?
Integrating technology with healthcare industry will improve quality of life. Also, the use of digital technology in the healthcare industry will increase efficiency, quality, and patient experience.
What is new technology in healthcare?
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many trending technologies are used in healthcare. The new technologies in the healthcare industries are AI, blockchain, chatbots, voice search, and virtual reality.
What are the negative impacts of medical technology?
Medical technology can have some negative impacts on patients such as impersonal or minimized care, negative health effects, increased patient costs, inappropriate use, and invasion of privacy.
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