How has technology improved healthcare
The most vital sector in every country in the healthcare system. For a country to have a strong economy, it must prioritize its healthcare system to cater to the people in the country. The use of technology in healthcare has come to stay though it was one of the sectors that adopted a technology slowly as compared to other sectors. However, there have been innovations that have greatly improved healthcare delivery. Recently, the use of technology in the healthcare system can be found in every aspect ranging from meeting a doctor to dispatching results. Technology has led to groundbreaking machines that have improved the healthcare system. These machines produced have been beneficial to humans in such a way that they cannot be overemphasized. Here are some examples of how technology has improved healthcare. Read on how technology has helped education.
Precision in Diagnosis and Treatment
Thanks to innovations in technology, treatment and diagnosis are now much more accurate and precise. Modern imaging techniques, such as computed tomography (CT), ultrasound, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), allow for the precise and continuous visualization of inside organs, assisting in the early detection and diagnosis of disorders. This enables medical providers to create individualized treatment programs that are catered to each patient’s unique needs, improving outcomes and lowering risks.
Easy Accessibility to Patient’s Data
The use of computers in the hospital has increased the speed at which a patient’s data can be retrieved. This has replaced the use of sending folders to all departments you visit in the hospital. The use of folders can be very frustrating when there is a queue at the records unit. With computers, all you need is to provide your name and every health record will be made available to any department of the hospital you want to visit.
Again, storage devices like the use of clouds and drives make it possible to keep a large amount of data for a long time without wasting too much money. Also, when a patient is transferred to another facility, there will be no need to repeat tests on the patient since the patient’s data can be made accessible to the other health facility. This will facilitate fast healthcare delivery.
Turnaround Time
Turnaround time is simply the time spent when waiting for results at the hospital. The use of modern devices in the laboratory cannot be left out of how technology has improved healthcare. Results can now be dispatched faster since the machines being used are faster and can perform a variety of tests simultaneously. One of the many examples that can be seen is the vast difference between the spectrophotometer and hematology analyzer in the measurement of hemoglobin. The use of a spectrophotometer will require the preparation of Drabkin’s solution, mixed with blood and placed in the spectrophotometer. This is far different from the hematology analyzer because all you need is to put the blood under the aspirator to aspirate the blood to give you a value of various red blood cell indices together with hemoglobin levels which would have been done manually increasing turnaround time.
The use of Point of Care (POCT) devices has also contributed to decreasing turnaround time, POCT is the use of small hand-held devices to test for simple analytes like glucose and cholesterol. With little training, other health professionals will be able to operate these devices with little or no supervision. This will increase the rate at which tests will be finished and decrease pressure on laboratory scientists. Turnaround time will be drastically reduced.
Early detection of diseases
The use of modern equipment does not only decrease turnaround time but also leads to the early detection of diseases. When we take a look at pandemics that have hit the world, pandemics in the 21st century have had less effect than in previous centuries. This is because scientists now have sophisticated devices that can find the causes of diseases in a very short time. Early detection of both infectious and non-communicable diseases leads to early cures and even if they cannot be cured, scientists do their best to mitigate the disease. Covid-19 was detected early, however, it was human behaviors such as migrating that led to its spread. Although over 500 million people were infected, 6 million people died from it. Can this be said about pandemics before the use of technology in health care? It would have killed any person who got infected.
Quality Surgery
One of the advanced use of technologies in surgery is the use of VERASENSE sensor-assisted total knee replacement surgery. This type of technology is a wireless-sensor-assisted device that transfers data to the physician about the positioning and balancing of the prosthetic knee. VERASENCE helps the physician to place the implants in the right place and prevents try and error.
The use of robots to assist surgeons during surgery is gradually being introduced to the world. Robot-assisted surgery gives surgeons a variety of procedures to perform intricate surgeries. These procedures are presented on a screen with a 3D view of the part of the body being operated on while the surgeon with his team controls the robot. This method is less invasive and very precise. Find out about VERASENSE Orthisensor.
Breakthrough in Molecular Biology
The use of a Polymerase Chain Reaction machine to amplify DNA and RNA no matter how small the amount of sample used has been greatly helpful to the healthcare system. Other PCR machines do not only amplify DNA but also determine the levels of viruses in the sample when diseases such as HIV/AIDS are being treated.
Again, a breakthrough in molecular biology has improved healthcare through genome sequencing. This allows scientists to determine the entire genetic makeup of a cell or organism. It can also be used to identify defects in the genetic makeup caused by diseases such as cancer. This is a result of the development of a DNA sequencer. Genomic sequencing leads to quality production of drugs since defects can be seen. The right type of drug can be produced to help fight infections from viruses since their genetic makeup has been determined.
Wearable Technology and Health Apps
The ubiquity of wearable technology and health apps has given people the power to actively manage and monitor their own health. These gadgets, which range from smartwatches to fitness trackers, may gather and analyze a variety of health information, such as heart rate, sleep patterns, activity levels, and more. Health apps offer individualized knowledge, suggestions, and advice on healthy behaviors, encouraging preventive care and enabling people to make well-informed choices about their well-being.
Conclusion
Technology cannot be left out when it comes to how the health sector has improved. Although it is one of the sectors with highly skilled and trained professionals, the use of technology has given a clear definition of how the combination of human resources and machines can go a long way to improve practices that people thought were impossible. It may have some side effects but in the long run, it has been very beneficial.
How technology has improved healthcare may be expensive, but in the long run, it is cost-effective. More lives are saved and health delivery is fast.