What will healthcare look like in the future? The rise of digital healthcare could mark a big change on the sector as we know it, as medical advancements become increasingly innovative and continue to diversify the healthcare landscape.
One such example is the use of Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality to create clinical simulations that have the potential to revolutionise medical education and frontline patient care. Another increasingly prevalent technology is that of robots – useful for automating a variety oftasks, and even performing surgeries with greater precision.
With Artificial Intelligence (AI) further accelerating the growth of this field, the market for digital healthcare is only getting bigger — and countries are competing to get ahead of the race. Doing so would require not only breakthrough investments in healthcare, but also an emphasis on developing the digital healthcare startup sector.
In the long-term, there is hope that technology can improve data quality and patient care while also simplifying workflows to reduce burnout across the industry.
While these innovations claim to make healthcare more efficient and patient-centric, some cast doubt on whether that will truly be the case.
The breakneck speed of digitalisation in healthcare may lead to a lower level of caution being practised with it, putting both its reliability and ability to protect sensitive data at risk. Another concern is such technology would not be accessible to all, and may exacerbate the existing socio-economic inequalities in the healthcare system. Indeed, it seems that in trying to alleviate our current problems, digital healthcare may bring about new ones instead.
Yet, most clinicians agree that the widespread use of digital health technologies will drive positive change in healthcare in just the next 10 years. In the face of both hope and skepticism, one thing remains clear: the future of healthcare is a journey into uncharted territory, where the balance between innovation and caution will ultimately shape the path we tread.
