Patient-centricity is key when it comes to providing effective healthcare. Currently, some of the most exciting opportunities lie within the development of digital health technologies that can help manage diseases, improve outcomes for patients, and positively support healthcare professionals to improve the provision of care.
In order to be effective, digital solutions need to be built around patients and their specific needs. Digital solutions that are effective in the real world must be designed to support patient tasks and goals whilst also being engaging to use.
In this one-hour panel debate with leading experts from the healthcare industry, we explore how the 4D’s of healthcare – Diagnostics, Drugs, Data & Devices – will influence patient outcomes in the future, and how the Covid-19 pandemic has caused a swell in the uptake of technology not only with patients but healthcare professionals and practitioners.
There has been a phenomenal rise in the adoption of technology to provide digital health services in the past 18 months; resulting in a mass education of clinicians in the ability to utilise technology to consult with patients, as well as the general populace in the valuable nature of remote-monitoring of health and wellbeing, and where necessary and practical, providing real-time interventions.
Our experts share their thoughts on how the pandemic has kick-started digital innovation in healthcare, and where this will go next as the world adapts to a more hybrid approach, with technology widely accepted and sought after by both patients and healthcare professionals.
Key take-aways:
Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality: our panel discusses how the use of this technology has revolutionised our ability to explore enormously large and complex data sets in a three-dimensional space. Historically, interrogating data has been flat; virtual reality headsets allow for more complete visualisation, while working remotely, and maintaining productivity and collaboration. 3D visualisation of data is and will continue to rapidly evolve how drugs of the future are designed and tested.
Digitisation of Health: The rapid and widespread adoption of technology has allowed for the digitisation of health services across the entire spectrum; from remote monitoring and interventions, to the acceptance of tele-health to treat patients remotely, providing a more cost effective and efficient approach. Our panel discusses the new opportunities presented through the adoption of technology to radically improve care, in particular in the pharmaceutical industry which has experienced a rapid pace of change when bringing new products to market.
Clinical Trials: Prevalent to the current situation, and a topical discussion among the panel members is the fundamental shift in the way the industry approaches and carries out clinical trials and studies. Covid-19 has forced decentralisation of clinical trials, where technology is now at the forefront of continuous, real-time monitoring. The pandemic has challenged the pharmaceutical industry to think more laterally and not accept the status quo.
Exponential Growth in Data: The ubiquity of sensor-rich devices, wearables and trackers is transforming the digital therapeutics space. Patient care is now continuous and a two-way discussion based on real-time data; practitioners are no longer looking at a single point in time measurement, they have an holistic data-rich picture to enable better outcomes and a more fulfilled experience for the end-users.
Conclusion:
We are at a key juncture of healthcare, wellness and patient outcomes, where the Four D’s need to come together to overcome the challenges of siloed data, and understand the complexities of a rapidly evolving and changing world, with technology at the forefront of data capture and representation.
The insights now available from the population at large of collected data is allowing us to unlock knowledge about diseases and health conditions at a rate not previously seen or experienced, driving towards new therapeutics in the future.
The industry must continue learning and having open dialogues with regulators on how they can better support the next generation of technologies, and the levels of innovation happening across the industry to bring new products through faster and more efficiently, ultimately improving and enriching the outcomes of patients, giving them a much better quality of life.
At Waracle, we collaborate to create mobile products and services that make life better, whether it is through patient engagement, therapeutics, diagnostics, connected health or software-as-a-medical-device.
Our passionate technologists are waiting to hear from you, get in touch today!
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