Countries from all over the world spend billions of dollars on healthcare and medical issues. With each passing day, the expenditure for medical purposes is drastically increasing and so are the medical issues. With the advancement of technology and the development of infrastructure, medical science is coming up with new and effective innovations which can cure chronic diseases. These innovations are examples of how technology and medical science have merged together to make a better living for humans; better known as Digital Healthcare. It is not only a revolutionary movement in medical science but also helps to maintain and improve mental and physical health.
The concept of digital health as we know it today
It is an intriguing multidisciplinary concept that incorporates multiple software, hardware, and devices to improve the diagnostic system. It includes electronic health records (EHRs), mobile health (mHealth) apps, electronic medical records (EMRs), personalized medicines, and many others. These elements help to make the diagnosis more precise and effective. Implementing health care data digitally has given birth to health information technology (health IT) which is widely used in several aspects of medical institutions, hospitals, and research centers.
As the Global pandemic has approached, the paramount importance of digital health is even more evident to everyone. Since everyone was stuck at home during the lockdown, the doctors have utilized the advantages of telehealth and telemedicine to prescribe to their patients. Proper and dedicated practice of it can help to get rid of the global concerns like aging, child illness, and mortality, epidemics, and heart-attack, etc many others. The pandemic has enhanced the ongoing digital transformation in healthcare even faster.
Why is digital health so important?
Digital health is not only about technology and tools but a complete analysis of the data regarding diagnosis with radical methods, artificial intelligence, customized medicines, and prevention-oriented care. The advancement of AI (artificial intelligence), robotics, machine learning is offering ingestible sensors, robotic caregivers, and many devices that are capable of recognizing health problems more precisely. There are many applications to monitor the patients which are usually impossible to do manually. With intelligent manufacturing, modern technologies have become a vital part of safer and more effective healthcare programs.
According to the latest research, the digital health market will see a rise of (CAGR) of 27.9% from 2020 to 2027 which refers to a huge amount of $833.44 billion. The market is growing exponentially while being a major part of the world healthcare system. However, that does not imply that digital healthcare is very expensive. Its applications are everywhere and can be utilized by all kinds of people
Top five applications of Digital Healthcare
1. Entertainment for a Healthier lifestyle
A healthy lifestyle seeks both, better physical health and mental health. Only worrying about the disease does not help to get rid of the problem instead triggers anxiety, paranoia, and tension. Handy remedies like eating nutritious food, exercise, quitting cigarettes and alcohol help very much to lead a healthier lifestyle. Digital healthcare helps to lead a healthy life with a plethora of tools and applications. The apps are made in a way that provides information, motivation, and encouragement to proceed with. Only a healthy mind can provide a healthy body and digital healthcare provides a complete entertainment to that. It helps to recognize and monitor your sleep pattern, emotions, and body language.
2. Smartphones and Applications
Almost everyone around the world is a smartphone user and 60% of them have downloaded healthcare and fitness apps to lead a better life. The apps have made it even easier to keep up with a healthy routine since one can monitor himself at every step with the help of it. The health monitoring apps help to identify the calorie and nutrient intake for every food while the fitness applications motivate to do an extra set. There are pre-sets and schedules for workout routines with proper exercises for every body type. Thus, the users are able to create their own diet chart and workout plans without spending any money but a simple download.
Even doctors take help of some of the applications to monitor vital signs like heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, weight, blood sugar, and many others. The global pandemic made every action socially distanced and untouchable while digital healthcare is bringing everyone under the same umbrella. In case of emergencies, when a doctor cannot arrive immediately; health applications and real-time consulting with the doctors can help to avoid a risky situation.
3. Wearables and other devices
Nowadays, there are numerous companies selling health informatics, wearables, and other cybernetic technologies to make a radical change in the market. People are getting more biased over these products as it does not only help to monitor your body but also tell when to consult a doctor. Without this technological impact, it would have been really hard to identify the problem meanwhile the disease takes a bigger shape inside the body. There are devices for checking blood sugar, pressure, pulse rate, and everything which provide the idea of how healthy a person actually is.
A wearable is more like an advanced band or wristwatch that stays attached to the skin and monitors everything from blood flow to metabolism rate, sleep cycle, pulse rate, and so on. It also works like a fitness device that counts steps, kilometers traveled, and burns calories.
4. Newer Innovations
While some innovations are still in progress, digital healthcare is showing some promising results. The usage of 3D printing is not only limited to DIY crafts but also making wonders in the medical sector, Doctors and researchers are utilizing it to create an artificially printed 3D heart and other organs which are damaged or cannot be recovered. It is also being used in bone construction and limb-related issues.
Conclusion
Digital Healthcare is one of the wonders of technology and medical science which is helping to minimize chronic problems with a long-lasting impact. It is budget-friendly and provokes people to lead a healthy lifestyle.
