Healthcare is growing increasingly with sports, just like wagers to bet on super bowl. Many consumer-centric organizations are playing catch-up. Healthcare organizations are looking for ways to gain a competitive advantage and improve care delivery while staying abreast of the latest technology.
Here are seven technologies that you may find useful in your healthcare organization:
1. Medical Devices
Medical devices are used to diagnose and treat injuries and diseases. They’re also used to monitor and regulate the body, from heart rate monitors to blood pressure cuffs.
These devices are used as part of treatment, controlling pain with anesthesia pumps, or monitoring vital signs during surgery.
2. Wearable Technology
Wearable technology is a subset of the broader category of wearable computing. It refers to devices that can be worn on the body, and it’s a subcategory of consumer electronics.
Wearable technology is classified as mobile computing, which generally refers to computers that are small enough to fit in your pocket or bag.
3. Patient Portals
Patient portals are a way for patients to access their health records and communicate with their doctors. They can also be used for patient education, appointment scheduling, and prescription refills.
A patient portal is essentially an online version of your office’s paper chart system. It allows patients to view their medical records through the internet or mobile devices such as smartphones.
This gives them the ability to review information about past appointments, make appointments online and check on test results that may have been ordered by their physician.
4. Mobile Healthcare Applications
A mobile health care application or ( mHealth app) is a software program designed to help you track or manage your health. These apps can be used to manage symptoms, stay motivated and learn more about your condition. They can even connect you with other patients who have the same conditions as you do!
There are many benefits of using mHealth apps, including:
- Making it easier for users to understand their conditions and how they can improve their health.
- Giving users access to information about their treatment options.
- Encourage users to adopt healthy behaviors by providing them with reminders or useful tips on how to live healthier lives.
- Improving access for those living in remote areas where it’s difficult for them to make regular trips to health care centers.
5. Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare
Artificial intelligence (AI) is being used in healthcare to help doctors diagnose diseases, make treatment decisions and find the best treatment options. AI-based systems can learn from patient data, such as medical records, lab tests, and images.
In some cases, artificial intelligence can be used alone to identify potential problems and recommend measures based on past experiences with similar patients. In other cases, it works alongside human medical staff to provide suggestions that may save time and money while improving care quality.
6. Informatics in Healthcare
Informatics is the use of data to improve healthcare. Data can be used to improve healthcare delivery, payment quality, and outcomes and also used for cost-saving savings in healthcare.
Here are several tools you may need in your informatics toolbox:
- Electronic health record (EHR) systems.
- Clinical decisions support systems
- Healthcare information exchange (HIE) networks and registries.
- Health information management systems( HIMS) tools.
- Clinical decision support systems. These tools are designed to help clinicians make better decisions when they care for patients with multiple complex conditions at once.
These tools work by collecting data from different sources and then using it to predict best practices or alert clinicians if a problem arises. A good example of this is an app like Epocrates, which provides drug-to-drug interaction checks via its mobile app.
This app enables physicians to see if there’s anything problematic about prescribing certain drugs together before it becomes an issue during treatment.
7. Electronic Health Records Software
Electronic health records software is used to manage patients’ data, whether it’s for patients who are in the hospital or those seeing the doctor. The software helps doctors and nurses work more efficiently, which can help with patient care. It also helps with billing and coding.
Electronic health records software can be used across multiple areas of healthcare, such as hospitals, nursing homes, and doctor’s offices.
Wrapping Up
Healthcare is more consumer-centric than ever before, and this is only expected to continue and become more popular as technology advances, and consumers become more tech-savvy.
I hope you are now more aware of the tech tools you may need to succeed in healthcare. The best thing about these resources is their versatility, so don’t be afraid to experiment with them and see how they fit into your workflows.