digitization of healthcare

Does going digital make healthcare too complicated?

Sara Lafond

We have seen that healthcare is starting to shift towards digitization, and many believe that the future of healthcare will be digital. But there are some who are hesitant to adopt technology when it comes to their health, and it is not without reason.

As we have already seen, there are many benefits to the digitization of healthcare, the main ones being (1) convenience, (2) low-cost, (3) improved patient experiences, (4) improved access to healthcare and (5) decreased risks of acquiring an HAI. These benefits are all significant, but how will it affect the people who aren’t as familiar with technology or aren’t as tech-savvy’s access to healthcare?

A recent article published by Forbes discusses the difficulties that people trying to access online health services may face. According to the article, many online healthcare platforms are needlessly complicated and confusing, which makes many people more hesitant and less inclined to use these services.

According to Dale Cook, CEO of Learn to Live, an online mental health company,

“When people are already struggling with mental fitness, it can create limitations in how much bandwidth they have for complications. Facing technical problems when they’re trying to get help is the last distraction that they need.”

Dale Cook, Retrieved from Forbes.com (2019)

Learn to Live is one of the few online healthcare services that has been successful in creating an easy-to-use digital interface. They have done a lot of primary research, through the use of focus groups, user experiences and commentaries, which has allowed them to ensure that their clients have a pleasant experience.

So what can be done to make digital healthcare more accessible to all?

Burger (2019) stresses the importance of simplicity and empathy when designing an online medical service.

With the majority of developed nations experiencing an ageing population, those who are 70 and over will continue to be the group of people who consult doctors the most frequently. One concern is that the older population is not tech-savvy, and will not be able to use these online services. However, most of these people are able to use technology; online platforms just need to simplified for them to use.

In terms of empathy, the article discusses how online medical companies need to attempt to understand what their clientele is experiencing. For example, Jeff Johnson, a computer science professor from the University of San Francisco states,

“We see age-related changes beginning at age 50. That’s when fonts become too small, speech-enabled technologies are too fast and click targets are too little to hit reliably.”

Jeff Johnson, Retrieved from Forbes.com

Online health service companies need to understand that the clients seeking their help are either not well or concerned about their personal health. Taking this into consideration, it is essential that companies make their online interfaces more accessible for their clients.

The future of digital healthcare

As digital healthcare continues to become more important, it will be essential that these online health companies ensure that their services are simple for users, and that they take into consideration what patients may be going through when seeking their services.

Source:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/nextavenue/2019/03/15/when-going-digital-makes-health-care-harder/#4d9bd6db340c

The digitization of healthcare

Sara Lafond
Source: Wikimedia Commons

In recent years, we have begun to see a new healthcare trend emerge: the digitization of healthcare and the creation of telemedicine. As we have already seen on this blog, many patients are beginning to once again turn to receiving healthcare in their homes. This is especially due to the introduction of telemedicine, which allows patients to seek medical diagnoses and treatments without having to go to clinics.

So what exactly does the digitization of healthcare and telemedicine mean? MedicineNet defines telemedicine as:

The use of medical information exchanged from one site to another via electronic communications for the health and education of the patient or healthcare provider and for the purpose of improving patient care. Telemedicine includes consultative, diagnostic, and treatment services.

(MedicineNet, 2018).

What are the benefits associated of digitizing healthcare?

There are many benefits that the digitization of healthcare will allow.

  1. Decreased risks of hospital-acquired infections. One of the frequently covered topics on this blog are HAIs. If less people are visiting hospitals, and instead using telemedicine to get diagnosed and treated from home, there will be a reduction in the number of people getting HAIs.
  2. Improved patient experiences. With the use of telemedicine, patients won’t have to spend time making appointments, travelling to hospitals or waiting to be seen by doctors. They simply will need to go online to consult a doctor, and can receive treatments and prescriptions within minutes.
  3. Improved access to healthcare. As previously discussed on our post, Are Hospitals Disappearing?, many patients living in rural areas have to travel far to access healthcare. Telemedicine will allow people to be diagnosed and treated from almost anywhere in the world.
  4. Reduced costs for patients. Patients will pay much less to consult doctors online than at a clinic. The PBS News video on telemedicine (see below) tells us that a consultation online costs only $40, compared to $100-300 at an actual hospital (in the United States).

What are the risks?

It’s important to note that while there may be many benefits to digitizing healthcare, there are still some risks that need to be taken into consideration.

  1. One of the frequent concerns about telemedicine is that technology will replace doctors. While the digitization of healthcare will definitely have an impact on the way that doctors and patients interact with one another, doctors will always be necessary. First, they will still be needed to give the patient diagnosis and prescription, whether it be through video calls or in person. Second, doctors will also still be needed for more complex treatments and procedures.
  2. Another major concern is related to patient data security. We all know that there are already various privacy and security issues with posting your information online, so it understandable then that there would be concerns related to patient medical history being hacked or frauded.
  3. Finally, there is a concern of faulty diagnoses. Since doctors will not be able to physically examine patients and will be relying on webcams and phone cameras to see patients’ symptoms, many people have expressed concern that doctors may not be able to diagnose the problem properly.

The future of digitizing healthcare

We are living in a very interesting time for healthcare facilities. Many companies, such as Doctor on Demand, have already joined this healthcare “revolution.” Insurance companies have already begun partnering with telemedicine companies to cover internet consultations for their clients. There are many changes happening and many changes still needed to be made. It will be interesting to see what influences the digitization of healthcare will have on the future of the health industry.

For more information, see the video below:

Sources:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5MZP6dbhFI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cM4aep7VXb8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1-MFo7_n-Y

https://www.healthcaretechoutlook.com/news/the-problems-and-solutions-to-digitizing-healthcare-nid-652.html