IoT (Internet of Things) is one of those technological marvels of the modern era that has digitally transformed the Healthcare sector by introducing smart healthcare apps. These healthcare IoT applications have helped the medical industry to overcome the existent roadblocks and limitations in its functioning. IoT App Development Companies have empowered the practitioners, patients, and service providers to unfold new horizons. This has resulted in simplified access to medical facilities through remote communication and reduced mortality rate on account of avant-garde treatment methodologies. Needless to say, the rate of adoption of IoT App Solutions has sky-rocketed and an upward demand curve has been observed.
Take a look at this interesting statistical
data released by Statistica, indicating the estimated size of the IoT
Healthcare market (in billion US $) between 2016 and 2025.
Fortune Business Insights predicts that the
IoT in Healthcare market size will soar up to USD 176.82 Billion by the end of
2026.
In this blog, I have penned down how IoT in
Healthcare has revolutionized the fundamental tenets of this domain and the
immense benefits of IoT
Application Development reaped by the patients, doctors, and service
providers unanimously.
IoT in a nutshell
Internet of Things comprises of a network
of devices and software applications, interconnected via computer networks and
wireless communication channels. This ingenious eco-system is meant for
collecting and sharing real-time data. Data is stored in cloud platforms and
can be remotely accessed by authorized users from any part of the globe. IoT in
Healthcare has worked wonders in domains like telehealth, mHealth,
telemedicine, etc. Let’s dive into some of the use cases in the healthcare
domain.
Popular Use cases of IoT Applications
in Healthcare
Remote patient Diagnoses and
Observation
IoT empowered solutions record the
necessary health parameters to facilitate remote patient diagnoses and
monitoring. This is one of the important features of IoT in telemedicine apps.
Doctor-patient consultations take place
through live audio and video call, and other advanced communication channels,
without the need for patients to pay a visit to the hospital. IoT powered
external devices such as digital stethoscopes, oximeters, etc are being used by
patients during digital telemedicine consultations.
IoT activity monitoring devices such as
heart rate monitoring cuffs, glucometers, pulse meters, etc. used by the
patients enable the doctors to remotely observe the health of elderly patients
and those with chronic conditions. The data obtained from these devices aid the
physicians to identify the correct course of treatment for patients.
Mobile Health and Wellness
IoT mobile app development has elevated
wellness to a completely new level. Wearables like Apple watches, Fitbits, etc
transmit patient’s vital health parameters through Bluetooth, Wifi, GPRS
Networks and display the results in the smartphones. This proves immensely
beneficial in keeping a track of the body vitals and other wellness parameters
such as sleep patterns, body temperature, heart rate, blood sugar level,
activity tracking, etc. and providing real-time data to the patient, their
doctors, and caregivers. For example, a Holter monitor device is a wearable
that tracks abnormalities in a patient’s heartbeat. This helps in timely
preventive care. Click here to gain more
insights on wearable technology.
IoT powered ingestible devices
These ingenious ingestible sensors
available in the form of pills can be swallowed and it remains inside the human
body and stay at a particular spot and sends data to mobile applications. The
sensors embedded inside these pills detect drug doses taken and missed by the
patient. Some of these pills have an in-built camera that provides visibility
of the internal organs. Thus, ingestible devices
prevent life-threatening conditions.
Emergency handling
IoT facilitates the accurate collection of
patient data in case of medical emergencies and transmission of this data in
real-time to the Emergency Response medical staff. This allows the ER staff to
stay prepared while the patient is being brought to the hospital and no time is
wasted after the patient’s arrival.
Aiding surgeries
IoT powered tools and applications provide
handy assistance during surgeries and in handling post-surgery care. The IoT
sensors accumulate data, transmit it, and analyze the same, resulting in
finding out even the tiniest problem, and thereby preventing surgical
complications.
Efficient Tracking of Patients,
Staff, and Inventory
Smart IoT healthcare solutions contribute
in the following ways:
- Wireless ID cards for staff and
patients enhance security, effectively manage admissions, and simplify staff
management.
- RFID tags are
used to track patients such as babies and elderly patients with Alzheimer's
disease and even staff members in case of urgency.
- IoT integrates with Real-time
location systems (RTLS) to manage the assets of healthcare enterprises. It
employs BLE
(Bluetooth Low Energy) and iBeacon to track supplies in the operating rooms
and inventory.
Virtual Monitoring of medical
equipment
The contemporary healthcare services
require avant-garde software and hardware equipment and their continuous
monitoring, to prevent them from system failures and cyber-attacks. IoT powered
solutions virtually monitor them and provide alerts to the medical staff if
some anomaly is detected.
Managing Pharmacy
Managing the drugs in a hospital and
transferring the same safely to storage facilities is a herculean task with
chances of errors. Pharmacies managed by IoT application enable faster delivery
of medicines and takes care of drug-preservation issues while transfer.
Handling insurance procedures
Insurance companies leverage IoT devices to
validate claims and detect fraudulent practices with the help of the data
captured by these devices. Such devices also enhance the transparency between
insurance providers and customers regarding processes like pricing,
underwriting, handling claims, and assessing risks.
Architecting an IoT Environment in
healthcare
Steps to be followed by Digital healthcare
service providers for the implementation of IoT are as follows:
- Deploying devices possessing
sensors, monitors, actuators, camera systems, actuators, and detectors to
accumulate data.
- Conversion of received data to
the digital format and store the same in a data center.
- Managing and analyzing the
medical data with the help of data analytics based on which the correct course
of action is decided.
Key Advantages of IoT powered
Healthcare IT services
Easy access to healthcare facilities
Remote doctor monitoring and consultation
facilities make healthcare and wellness easily accessible to patients with less
mobility, the ones residing in remote areas with no hospitals nearby, and the
super-busy professionals who hardly find time to visit the clinic. Moreover,
the patients have a plethora of options at their disposal while choosing
doctors.
Misdiagnosis of diseases
IoT system with the help of computer
vision, sensors can collect data from several IoT devices and leverages
advanced analytics enabling providers to know the course of the disease and
thus avoid the wrong diagnosis of diseases. Faster and error-free diagnoses of
diseases, continuous patient monitoring, and proactive treatment methodologies
are some of the major gains for patients opting for digital healthcare
services.
Lesser negligence and better
adherence to treatment plans
Thanks to the IoT healthcare monitoring
solutions encourage patients to stick to their treatment procedures and help
the doctors to stay informed about the patient’s condition without much ado.
Operational Flexibility
Online diagnoses with the help of IoT
Mobile apps allows doctors to enjoy flexible schedules without having to visit
the clinic in case of non-emergencies.
Lesser crowd in hospital spaces
Digitally smart healthcare centers can do
away with over-crowded waiting rooms, and as such can manage with lesser spaces
and fewer administrative staff. Furthermore, the chances of healthcare staff
getting infected with contagious diseases lessen.
Cost-efficiency
- IoT healthcare solutions enable
doctors to scale up the patient count by diagnosing more patients in a day.
- On account of digital real-time
consultation and monitoring, patients save on the cost by avoiding unnecessary
hospital visits, longer hospital stays, and readmissions.
Augments Brand value
Implementing IoT powered smart solutions and
motivating the patients to adopt these technologies enhances the brand value of
a company and provides them a competitive edge over others and improves overall
patient satisfaction too.
Final Verdict
IoT in Healthcare has redefined healthcare
services altogether by opening up a wide range of convenient options for
patients, practitioners, and healthcare service providers. It’s high time that
the healthcare operators incorporate IoT healthcare solutions in their practice
operations if they would like to make a mark in today’s dynamic and competitive
market.
To know more about our core technologies, refer to links
below
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