As our world increasingly revolves around rapid growth, new technologies find their way into the fields of healthcare. This shifting landscape in health is having profound effects on the daily lives of both patients and healthcare service providers, improving both the quality and accessibility of these services in the United Kingdom and beyond.
Healthcare Technology
Healthcare technology, or health tech for short, is becoming prominent for treating patients and easing the demanding jobs providing care in hospitals and various other care institutions. Currently, many forms of “futuristic” health tech are stable and fit for testing, but either incapable of or unready for widespread implementation and use throughout multiple healthcare domains. This category includes virtual reality treatments and the use of 3D printing, which are both limited by their relative lack of accessibility. In the short run however, demand rests on quick solutions to pressing medical concerns. Here, the potential for rapid growth lies in innovations to existing technologies. You may have already heard of robot-assisted surgery, which was famously demonstrated in an operation on a grape, and has been in use since 1985. Though the technology is being used in hospitals across the world, it still requires substantial training and funding to be used efficiently. As students of medicine begin to take on a more technical curriculum in medical school, we will see continue seeing such technologies being more readily utilised in care around the world.
Digital Health
In considering new healthcare solutions, we can look outside of the domain of hospitals and into services provided at the homes of patients. Digital healthcare is the optimisation and use of digital technologies in domains of healthcare, which is often manifested in applications on smartphones or computers. Although software is generally not used to treat patients directly, it is often supplied as a platform for convenience with healthcare-related services, such as booking appointments, ordering medicines, or online consultations. The market for digital health in the UK is projected to grow at a 35% rate over a 4-year period, giving patients far greater access to the tools necessary to take control of their own health-related needs.
How Healthera Fits In
Healthera provides digital app services connecting patients, pharmacies, and GP surgeries. It is a tool available in the market for patients to use in messaging pharmacies, ordering prescriptions, and tracking adherence. The app can also be used for patients to order on behalf of others, and provides workspace management functionality for pharmacies. Find out more about us on our website or from your local, Healthera partner pharmacy!
