3 Ways Technology Is Improving Healthcare

We live in an age where technology has infiltrated literally every aspect of our lives from the way we shop to the way we eat and even to the types of entertainment we enjoy. It is no longer the exception to the rule that technology will have a direct impact on almost everything we do. But, have you ever stopped to think about just how technology benefits what you are doing and what it would be like if technology suddenly came to a grinding halt?

Some aspects of life would go on pretty much as usual but other areas would suffer immensely. Healthcare would be one area that would suffer huge consequences. If you have any doubts, here are 3 ways in which technology is improving healthcare today and will continue to do so for years to come.

1. Patient Records in the Cloud

Not so long ago it was almost impossible to be referred to a specialist without waiting weeks, if not months for information to be transmitted from your referring physician to the medical specialist. Hard copies of literally everything the doctor had in his or her file would need to be copied and delivered to the specialist you were being referred to. The specialist would need to review those records such as digital radiology reports and then request further information if what was sent was inconclusive.

This process could take months, these back and forth written communications. Now patient information is stored in the cloud, somewhere out there in cyberspace and if a specialist needs to access records, it is as quick as a mouse click away. The rapidity at which patients can be referred upwards and then treated is a direct result of IT technology at its best.

This process could take months, these back and forth written communications. Now patient information is stored in the cloud, somewhere out there in cyberspace and if a specialist needs to access records, it is as quick as a mouse click away. The rapidity at which patients can be referred upwards and then treated is a direct result of IT technology at its best.

2. Healthcare Apps for Patient Self-Assessment

Patients can now participate in their own healthcare with self-assessment apps accessed from their cell phones and other mobile devices. Wearable self-assessment technology is just now coming into its own and patients suffering from anything from obesity to heart disease to diabetes and any number of other chronic conditions can play an active role in their healthcare treatment plan.

Are you suffering from diabetes and need to regularly monitor your blood sugar or inject yourself with insulin? There is an app to help you monitor levels of glucose in the blood and will set off reminder alarms when it is time to administer your shot. Wearable apps can monitor a heart patient’s blood pressure and other vital signs to sound out a warning if there is a problem. Not only is the patient notified but a message is immediately transmitted to the doctor who then takes steps to treat the patient remotely.

This may be a phone call telling that patient to get to the ER or doctor’s office immediately or the physician may be able to diagnose and treat the problem remotely over the phone. Healthcare Apps allow patients to have an active role in their own treatment plan and enable physicians to monitor that patient’s health in real time, often a life-saving feature.

3. Data Driven Patient Care Strategies

Today’s patients should also be viewed as consumers. There is no steadfast rule that says a patient must stick with one doctor if he or she isn’t happy with the care being given. Technology enables research groups to study and analyze patient data to chart what it is that doctors are doing to grow their practices and how others are failing to satisfy what it is that consumers are looking for.

Also, budgets are a prime concern in patient care and so statistical analysis of what doctors are charging, how they are recovering payments and ways in which they are not budgeting wisely can be analyzed via software programs. AccuReports is a prime example of an internet based program that can help doctors, clinics and hospitals better manage finances in order to continue improving and growing their practices.

There are literally dozens of other ways in which technology has a direct impact on healthcare but these three are the top ways in which technology has made a significant improvement in patient care. The best ‘proof’ of all is to consider just how long the average lifespan of today is as compared to just a generation or two ago. Technology is a huge part of that improvement and without continual advances over time, the average lifespan of today would still be somewhere around 40 years of age. That’s a fact.