The medical field seeks to reduce risk and cost while increasing access, quality, and efficiency in the evolving digital era. It’s all tarred and feathered by science and — you guessed it — tech, especially the Internet of Things. This technology, a network of intercommunicating devices that collects, transmits and interprets data in real-time, has the ability to alter the industry forever. The essential tenet of connected health is to reimagine a healthcare system that does not just revolve around one.
In this article, we will explore the fascinating concept of connected health, which harnesses the power of IoT technology to enhance healthcare experiences and improve outcomes for patients. We’ll also delve into some exciting and innovative applications of IoT in the healthcare industry that are transforming the way we approach healthcare.
Healthcare Transformation and the Concept of Connected Health
Healthcare transformation is the process of changing healthcare delivery and utilization to satisfy the evolving demands and aspirations of regulators, payers, providers, and patients. Factors driving health care change include among others:
• Aging population, rising prevalence of chronic diseases and disparities in health that endanger the long-term sustainability and quality of health systems.
• The growing requirement for individualized, pragmatic, and accessible care responses to a greater need for patient empowerment, participation as well as satisfaction.
• Emerging technologies such as blockchain technology, cloud computing, IoT (Internet of Things), or AI (artificial intelligence) are enhancing innovation in health care and making it more effective.
Connected Health means utilizing internet of things (IoT) as well as other technologies so as to create an integrated seamless collaborative healthcare ecosystem where data moves freely between patients, providers and other stakeholders.
Objectives of Connected Health:
• To give continuous, customized, real-time monitoring, diagnosis, treatment, and illness prevention for patients. This will enhance patient outcomes and experiences.
• To optimize healthcare operations and costs through process optimization, error reduction, increased accountability, and transparency.
• To improve provider performance and productivity through coordinated, evidence-based, and data-driven decision-making and care delivery.
A Patient-Centered Approach to Monitoring: Wearable Health Technology
Wearable technology such as smartwatches, fitness trackers, patches, and implants is one of the most widely used IoT healthcare applications. Numerous physiological and behavioral indicators, including activity level, glucose level, blood pressure, heart rate, and sleep quality, can be measured by these devices. For further evaluation and feedback, they can also wirelessly send the data to a cloud platform, a smartphone, or a healthcare provider.
By letting patients monitor their health and progress and get customized alerts and recommendations, wearable technology can make monitoring more patient-centered. Patients may be better able to stick to treatment programs and lifestyle modifications as a result. Additionally, wearable gear can assist healthcare professionals in remotely monitoring their patients and acting quickly and correctly in the event of any abnormalities or emergencies. The following are examples of wearable technologies are revolutionizing healthcare monitoring:
1. The Apple Watch Series 4 has an electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor that may identify atrial fibrillation and abnormal heart rhythms, alerting the wearer and their emergency contacts.
2. The Dexcom G6, a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) gadget that can send data to a smartphone app or other compatible smart device, can measure a user’s blood sugar level every five minutes.
3. The Proteus Discover, a wearable patch and smartphone app that can receive data from the digital pill that tracks a user’s drug intake and physiological response.
Embracing IoT in Healthcare: integrating, Connecting, and Exchanging Data in Real-Time
Data integration, or the process of merging data from many sources and formats, including social media, mobile apps, wearables, medical devices, and electronic health records (EHRs), is another significant use of Internet of Things in healthcare. Better communication and collaboration between various healthcare professionals and stakeholders can be facilitated by data integration, which can also offer a more comprehensive and comprehensive view of the patient’s health history, condition, and needs.
Through the use of wireless technologies, IoT can facilitate data integration by enabling real-time connections and data exchanges between different devices and platforms. In order to store, process, and interpret massive amounts of data and give consumers fast, useful insights, IoT can also make use of cloud and edge computing.
An Examination of Innovative Solutions and Their Impact on Patient Care
IoT technology solutions offer more individualized, practical, and accessible care options, hence enhancing patient experiences and care. By lowering mistakes, complications, and infections and enhancing diagnosis and treatment, IoT can help improve the standard and safety of healthcare. The following are a few instances of cutting-edge IoT solutions revolutionizing patient care:
• A doctor can review and provide diagnosis and treatment using TytoCare, a portable device that can conduct physical examinations of the temperature, skin, heart, lungs, throat, and ears. The data is sent to a smartphone app or telehealth platform.
• Propeller Health, a digital platform that combines and integrates data from sensors and inhalers, can give individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma coaching and feedback, as well as reports and insights to their doctors.
• The Intuitive Surgical da Vinci System, the robotic surgical system that can carry out minimally invasive procedures including prostatectomy and hysterectomy with improved control, dexterity, and precision as well as less blood loss and recovery time.
Conclusion
A strong technology, Internet of Things (IoT) has the capacity to change completely the healthcare industry. The reason is that it will encourage open, collaborative and integrated healthcare ecosystem where data and information are shared freely among stakeholders. IoT helps to deliver health care in a more proactive, individualized and patient-centered manner, thus improving health care experience.
However, there are certain challenges which this system must overcome with regard to IoT in healthcare; these include adoption issues, security aspects, interoperability challenges among others such as privacy of data and regulation. This will enable them to surmount the barriers and fully tap into the potential of the Internet of Things for Health Care. Here is what you can do as a reader. Find out about internet of things (IoT) in healthcare, look for devices that meet your needs then give feedback to your health care team. By working together, we can transform IoT in health provision into a true game-changer for personalized, better care.