As a result of accelerating advances in wireless technology, sensor and RFID technology, and Web 2.0 open-source platforms, it is clear that technology, communication tools, and healthcare is about to converge in a way that will fundamentally transform the future of healthcare.
I am particularly excited about how this convergence will deliver better, more timely and, ultimately, more accurate healthcare information and, in the process, dramatically improve the quality of patients lives.
The revolution will begin slowly but it has already begun as I explained in this post. Innovative companies, including Nike, are already developing “smart” clothing that can allow consumers and their health-providers better methods for managing and tracking healthcare outcomes. As wireless technology continues to be embedded with pacemakers and other more sophisticated devices, the revolution will take another big leap forward.
Such diagnostic technology is just one component of the revolution. Soon, new social “apps” will be developed that will allow consumers to make managing their health more like a game than a chore. Imagine, for example, an application on your iPhone that tracks your caloric intake and then calculates the reduction into an estimated “life savings.” (In essense, the tool will provide an immediate and positive feedback loop to encourage the desired behavior.) Beyond such games, the ever-evolving world of social networking tools will soon also allow your friends and loved ones to track and monitor your health. Imagine receiving a text message from your granddaughter encouraging you to exercise more. My guess is that it will be much more effective than a call from your doctor.
As the advances in genomics continue to proliferate expect the convergence of a variety of technologies to step in and help healthcare professional manage this plethora of data. As the price of sequencing individuals’ genomes plummets it is unreasonable to expect healthcare professionals to have direct knowledge of all of this genomic information. One solution is likely to be the creation of new genome apps which doctors can readily access to learn about, say, all of the genes now associated with heart disease.
The second and more innovative solution is likely to develop around new “patient-based” networks which emerge to help patients take direct control of those unique illnesses and diseases which center around specific gene-related diseases. I have written before about “crowd-sourcing” but I believe the convergence of all of the aforementioned technologies will soon allow—and indeed necessitate—the creation of such “crowdsourced” networks to help people better understand and deal with their unique genetic make-up.
Finally, I would add that the future of healthcare is going to convergence in some very interesting—and unexpected ways—because of the diversity of companies now moving into the space, including Intel, Qualcomm, Microsoft, Google and Amazon. This list, of course, doesn’t even begin to take into account the thousands of smaller, innovative companies seeking to become the next big healthcare player.
Whichever Small company (or companies) does become the “next big thing,” my prediction is that they will have found their “sweet spot” at the convergence of technology, communication and healthcare.
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