From the invention of the vaccine to the rise of stem cell therapy, technology has always pushed the healthcare industry forward. As our society’s technological capabilities improve, we generally see a corresponding increase in healthcare innovation.
This interplay between healthcare and technology has shaped patient outcomes and experiences for hundreds of years. It continues to do so to this day.
Embracing modern technology ensures your clinic stands out from others in the area. Not only will this help you keep your patients safe and improve your ability to serve them, new technologies keep them engaged and eager to return.
Keep reading to learn:
- What the future of healthcare technology looks like
- How you can leverage new technologies to help your clinic
- How digital signage will keep your patients coming back
1. Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence will revolutionize the healthcare industry in several key ways. Some of these will be more applicable to your clinic than others.
For example, AI makes it much easier to search through anonymous medical records to understand large scale trends in illnesses. Healthcare professionals also use it to analyze patient data and figure out the best solution to specific health issues.
AI is already more effective than humans at certain types of medical imaging analysis as well. Google recently made an AI that does breast cancer analysis. It performed 11.5% better than the average radiologist from the study.
AI makes it easier for doctors to provide individualized care to their patients based on data. As treatment grows increasingly personalized because of this, it will become even more important to communicate clearly with clinic screens and through patient portals, which are easier to access through digital signage.
These are just a few examples of how artificial intelligence can improve the care a patient receives. Clinics that use AI in the future will be able to provide their patients with better results. They’ll become more successful as a result of that.
2. Virtual reality (VR)
You may already know that virtual reality is training the next generation of surgeons. According to the Harvard Business Review, surgeons who train on VR perform 230% better than those who don’t. But you may not fully understand the potential that VR has for patients.
Healthcare professionals use VR headsets to reduce labor pain already. Women put on the device and find themselves in a calm environment where they are distracted from the pain they feel.
Researchers also believe this technique can work on patients who are dealing with pain from neurological, cardiac and gastrointestinal illnesses. Adding VR headsets to your clinics could help your patients manage their pain more effectively. You can use digital signage to advertise this service on your screens and increase the buy-in from your patients.
3. Healthcare trackers, wearables and sensors
Healthcare trackers are fantastic. They provide wearers with important information about their health and well-being. Clinics can take advantage of this growing consumer trend as well.
For example, wearable technology makes it super easy for a patient to share their vital information with a physician. This makes it possible for the patient to receive a wide variety of healthcare services from practically anywhere in the world.
In the future, a patient and doctor will meet over a video call and talk about the health information the patient has relayed through their healthcare tracker. Clinics that embrace this type of telehealth early should see their patient loyalty grow as a result.
4. Genome sequencing
Genome sequencing is one of the most exciting emerging technologies in healthcare. Companies like Illumina are developing new machines that will eventually allow personal genomes to be made for less than $100. That’s staggering when you consider the entire Human Genome Project cost the U.S. government about $2.7 billion.
When this happens, the results will be profound. People will learn an incredible amount about themselves and their unique health and wellness needs.
They could learn about their sensitivity to various drugs, their family’s medical history, and undiscovered medical conditions, among other things.
Clinics that begin offering personal genome sequencing early will have a leg up on the competition. They can use the technology to deliver more targeted results to their clients.
5. Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is another emerging field that forward-looking clinics can benefit from. It can help you provide your patients with a better healthcare experience in a few key ways.
First, nanotechnology can seriously reduce the number of invasive procedures that you need to perform. This is already happening. For example, the PillCam uses nanotechnology to perform colon exams in a noninvasive way. Using a tool like this in your clinic could be a great way to stand out from other providers in your area.
Nanotechnology can also provide you with more data about your patients’ health and well-being. For example, MIT has developed an electronic pill with nanotechnology. It can relay diagnostic information and release drugs on demand. Best of all, doctors can control the device with a common smartphone.
6. 3D printing
3D printing has numerous applications in the medical field. For example, a surgeon can create a 3D model of a patient’s spine to help plan their surgery. A dentist can scan a broken tooth to create a more accurate crown for a patient. And a doctor can use 3D printing to create new bio-tissues, blood vessels, and even artificial limbs for their patients.
Clinics that use 3D printing technology will provide their clients with more personalized and effective care. Those who embrace the technology early will earn a significant amount of goodwill with their patients.
7. Improved cloud integration
Cloud computing is already widely used in the healthcare industry. In fact, a recent survey found that more than 90% of healthcare organizations use the cloud. But the industry isn’t using this technology in a cohesive, holistic way yet. Rather, most cloud-based datasets exist in silos that are independent of one another.
This will change over the next decade. Healthcare companies are starting to bring all of their cloud-based data together to create large datasets. The goal is to feed this data into emerging technologies that deal with big data.
Clinics can use the impending improved cloud integration to their advantage. They can learn more about their practices and their patient outcomes. Then they can use that information to look for opportunities for improvements.
8. Smarter therapies
Smart devices are part of our daily lives now. But they aren’t super popular in the medical field yet. That should change over the coming years. There are several opportunities for clinics to begin using smart therapies to improve the care they provide to patients.
Some healthcare executives believe that smart drug delivery devices will be huge in the next decade. There’s an opportunity to create smart insulin pens, inhalers, and even pill packaging. The goal of doing this would be to track more data about how therapies work both inside and outside of clinical settings.
Analysts can feed this data back into other emerging technological solutions, such as artificial intelligence. The powerful combination of smart therapies and AI could lead to breakthroughs in how clinics treat their patients.
9. Digital signage
The right digital signage solution turns the screens you already have in your clinic into information and entertainment hotspots. The perfect package may include interactive kiosks, touch screen portals, video screens and digital information boards. Adding digital signage to your clinic could provide your patients with a much better healthcare experience.
For example, digital signage speeds up the patient intake process. With it, patients can check themselves in instead of waiting for in-person assistance.
Digital signs also make your clinic’s wait time more bearable to patients. But not every digital sign provider is the same. UPshow’s digital signs offer more than 500 content channels. Your patients won’t notice the wait as much if you provide engaging entertainment.
You can even use digital signs to share important health information with your visitors. For example, you could display wellness tips relevant to your practice on the signs, or use them to explain common treatment procedures.
It’s also worth mentioning that digital signage can improve your employees’ performance as well. Digital signs can complete some of the tasks that your employees would normally have to do themselves, thereby freeing them up for more important work. This includes contactless check-ins and streamlined patient intake with digital forms that patients can fill out online.
Additionally, you can use digital signs to provide recurring staff training and deliver emergency information across your team in an instant. These features are employee-facing. But as your employees perform better, the care that your patients receive from them will improve.
Digital signage gives you numerous ways to improve your patients’ healthcare experience with a single technology. This key benefit is why integrating a digital signage platform with traditional TV screens in healthcare clinics will be criticalin the years to come.
Embrace the future of healthcare technology with UPshow
Technology is a constant driver of progress in the healthcare industry. The most successful clinics are the ones that stay on top of technological improvements to always provide their patients with the best care possible. You can do the same by leveraging the screens already in your clinic to communicate better with your patients.
Digital signage makes it incredibly easy to educate your patients about your offerings, procedures, and general health and wellness. They double as independent check-in devices and entertainment screens.
Why not try digital signage for yourself? UPshow makes it incredibly easy to do so. You can fill out this form to schedule a free custom demo today.
