Advancements in Healthcare Technology: Empowering Patient Care and Resource Management

Health technology has been and will always remain an important part of the healthcare system. Right technologies offer the best solutions that enhance healthcare services at affordable rates. Novel biomedical, digital, and bioengineering technologies are continuously swamping the healthcare system and are consuming the maximum portion of the health budget.

Image source

Effective execution of health technologies needs the availability of the right number of human resources for health as well as infrastructure for maintenance for updating those technologies.

Health technology is a comprehensive term which means something that does any of the following things:

• Prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of medical conditions
• Promotes good health condition
• Offers rehabilitation
• Organizes delivery of the health care system.

Health technologies mainly include

• Different tests
• Medical devices
• Vaccines
• Blood products
• Processes
• Programs included in healthcare
• Medicines

Before we learn about different types of health technology, let’s walk through the advantages of healthcare technology

High costs, long waiting times, inefficiency in the development of drugs, and restricted access to insurance and the healthcare system are all getting improved because of technology. Here are a few other benefits of health tech:

• Increases effectiveness: The way by which you are buying healthcare is being more easy to access to a wide range of people because of the insurance technology sector. The waiting times for the patients are decreasing and hospitals are effectively staffed, credit of which goes to AI and predictive analysis. Not only that various surgical processes along with recovery times are also decreasing because of robotic processes that help in surgeries.
• Health technology promotes best care: Increasing access to healthcare and enhanced hospital operations is amazing. Health technology has offered the much-required effectiveness by customizing experiences as per the individuals.

Different types of health technology

Tele rehabilitation

Telerehabilitation mainly refers to the deliverance of rehabilitation services by any of the rehabilitation professionals using digital methods. With advancements in communication technology, this has now become one of the best options for delivering rehabilitation services.

Wearable technology

Wearable technology refers to those devices that one wears on the body for monitoring, tracking, and increasing various aspects of wellness and health. In the case of rehabilitation centers, the wearable technology must be flexible as the patients and the rehabilitation professional have several requirements. These requirements mainly refer to the technology design. User-friendly, how feedback is offered, and the way by which using these technologies can support the motivation of the patient and also their cooperation. Wearable health technology is mainly utilized for predicting future events, detecting important events and diagnostic supervision for enhancing decision-making.

Some examples of wearable technology are accelerometers, inertia measurement units, body-wearing sensors, and smart clothing.

Robotics

It mainly includes utilizing mechanical devices that help in augmented human mobility. Factors impacting the execution of robotics in clinical rehabilitation are

• Having the required knowledge of the device characteristics
• Right training for the professionals in luxury rehab for using health technology
• Resource availability
• String communication between the members of the team
• The expectations of the patients must be managed and realistic goals are also vital

Artificial Intelligence

AI mentions technologies that make analysis of the data and get patterns that allow decision making, diagnosis along with various treatment recommendations and follow-up.

Augmented reality

This is a technology that includes the creation of new images from various digital information in the actual physical environment of the person. It increases the perception and interaction of a person with the environment. Not only that but also this technology shows its potentiality in sectors of physical performance, balance, and fall prevention treatment along with enhancement of pain. 

Connected response solutions for emergencies

With good connectivity, there will be enhanced efficiency as well as response times for emergency care. With the latest healthcare smart technology, it is now possible to transfer data between ambulances, first responders, and also accident and emergency departments in less time which allows real-time responses.

This is a technology that allows fast communication, video calling with doctors from ambulances, quick patient history, and easy hospital admission with established history and medical conditions. Doctors upon arrival already have the data of the patient such as vital signs, heart rate, temperature, etc.

Smart hospital management technology

It helps in enhance the effectiveness, enhances the patient experience, and assists doctors in connecting the digital systems to make it easy to access information such as bed occupancy, use of devices, status of equipment, counts of materials and supplies, and other such operational data.

Tracking such information and making use of it in decision-making helps in enhancing resource management, decreasing waste, and assisting the hospital staff in avoiding not having that required because of bad tracking or improper data collection.

Hospitals with Smart Management Technology are going to have a vital role in future healthcare systems by utilizing several sophisticated technologies like AI, IoT, and also telehealth.

Health-based apps

Technology has resulted in the development of several health-related applications. Because of this patients get rapid access to relevant health-based information rapidly using their smartphones. Not only that but also they can keep better track of their medical appointments, and test results and get reminders as well. Some of the health-based applications also help people keep themselves healthy as they can track their food intake and levels of activity.

Mental health and healthcare technologies

Mental health is counted among the rising sectors of the healthcare system that are highly benefiting because of health technology. Virtual reality is like a bright light in curbing depression, Alzheimer’s, and PTSD. Through exposure therapy, people with mental health illnesses can train their brains to build up immunity to their past traumas till their thoughts no longer have an impact on them.

In addition, telemedicine applications the access to healthcare professionals as well as counselors have become easy. It has opened up lines of communication and strong support and decreased the requirement for waiting for in-person appointments at times of pressure.

Conclusion

The rapidly evolving health technologies have become important in decreasing the harm to patients and making sure there is effective utilization of available resources thereby facilitating economic sustainability.