Data seems to drive almost everything these days, and the medical sector is not exempt from this growing trend. Medicine has historically been both a scientific discipline as well as an art. Only in recent times, thanks to technology, has humanity had the opportunity to understand the human body and how it functions. Medicine is becoming more of a science, and that is actually a good thing.
The growing use of new technologies within the medical discipline has allowed doctors to accomplish what was once impossible. Thanks to recent scientific advances humanity is starting to develop the tools and knowledge to guarantee good health in a personalized way. And you guessed right, there is a lot of room for innovation in the MedTech sector.
As we reach what seems to be the limits of an old type of medicine, what comes next? Where will medicine go from here? How will science and businesses evolve to shape the medicine of the future? To answer these questions observe that which pulls their strings together: data.
Technologies like IoT have allowed us to collect data in unprecedented ways through digital ecosystems, helping us understand better the human body and deliver new solutions to medical problems. New apps are revolutionizing the foundations of medicine as we know it. In this post we discuss what we at Koombea consider to be the key takeaways of the use of data in the MedTech sector.
Data-Driven Devices (IoT)
Medical personnel has played a crucial role in diagnosing patients, but this has started to change as new methods have become available. Thanks to technologies like IoT and AI it is now possible to monitor patients’ biometric data to determine anomalies, perform follow-ups, or simply monitor what once was impossible. All sorts of new devices are helping medical personnel detect diseases and determine their causes while finding new ways to tackle them.
This approach is referred to as data-driven, and it is pulling the healthcare industry through an unprecedented transformation. The possibility to process the available data is changing some of the industry’s best practices while helping reduce costs. One of the most important ways it is impacting normal procedures is by tearing down siloes within patient treatment; this allows a smoother flow of medical information. Also, it is now possible to have real-time information on a patient’s condition.
This is an opportunity to innovate and develop new techniques and devices to treat a broad range of ailments. Apps are also part of this revolution. Patients can now follow their evolution and continuously stay in touch with health professionals. Diagnostics, genomics, diabetes, heart diseases, these are just some of the fields that benefit from a data-driven approach.
Personalization
One of the most significant ways in which data-driven devices are revolutionizing the health care industry is by allowing a more personalized form of medicine. Individual patient-centered medicine is now possible. Some call it patient consumerism because, as a consumer, a patient becomes able to bypass physicians when obtaining medical information, goods, and services, therefore improving the system. This also allows patients to have detailed information on their evolution as well as the possibility to have access to their historical medical data. Blockchain is playing a crucial role in this.
Thanks to the blockchain technology it is possible for patients to have their whole medical history stored in a secure way in the cloud. This is convenient not only for them but also for doctors who have to go through the pains of retrieving and understanding health records about a patient’s condition.
There is a whole new MedTech world opening up in what some call FemTech. Thanks to the possibilities of personalized medicine there has been a growing interest in developing specialized solutions for women. This involves reproductive health, pregnancy & nursing care, and also general wellness. This industry is expected to reach $25 billion in revenue by 2025.
One of the most important difficulties this approach must face is that of data privacy. This matters a lot because rich medical data can potentially help reduce medical errors by creating stronger integrated systems. However, the data falling into the wrong hands might be a violation of one’s privacy. Inadequate privacy regulations may slow down innovations, but they will not stop them. One common argument to this problem is that patients should be the owners of their medical data; not doing so ends up hurting the system through inefficiencies. How governments and international laws limit the use of data will be something businesses need to keep an eye on.
Business
Companies play an important role in the future of MedTech, there is no doubt about it. They are the ones driving innovation because they understand that in MedTech things need to be done in a cautious way without compromising new products and services. This last allows a proven concept to have a fast uptake once it is ready for the market.
The need to innovate is not the only challenge companies face. Organizing patient data will tend to become more important as more and more people start personalizing their relationship with medicine. As a result, having a world-class app becomes essential for the new MedTech world. Making information available and easy to understand will be one of the fastest ways to deliver a great UX. This, paired up with the meticulosity required for the MedTech sector, makes having a quality partner a must.
New business models will need to be created in order for new devices to be developed. The companies that create the best business models will have an advantage over their competitors. Even more important, the companies that are able to transition the technology of the present with that of the future will have one step closer to success.
Wrapping it up
One thing we can be certain of in the next few years is that MedTech will move, and it will move fast. If you are looking for a partner to develop your MedTech app contact us for a free consultation. We’d love to help your project become a reality.
