“Benefits of Technology In Healthcare Quality Improvement”

As technology advances, new digital tools and solutions are incorporated into our lives, either because they improve the experience in which we buy something, communicate or work. In this sense, one of the sectors that have benefited the most is health.
Technology has long streamlined healthcare, from wearable devices that offer the ability to collect a wide range of data about a person’s health, to robots that enable highly precise surgeries to be performed remotely. This has not only helped people live longer, but is also improving a variety of healthcare problems, such as lack of coverage, quality, or safety.

“Innovation impacts every aspect of our lives, and the health sector is one of the most benefited thanks to technology since advances provide medical providers with new tools to work”, as well as improvements in medicines and treatments”, says Gustavo Pares, CEO of NDS Cognitive Labs, a company specializing in artificial intelligence solutions. “This translates into improved medical care, offering a more pleasant and optimized experience for both patients and medical professionals, by using new digital technologies that help them with their work, such as telemedicine or wearable devices,” he says. Peers.

Over time, these technologies will improve and completely new ones will be created that will help solve specific problems in the world of health. But while that happens, NDS Cognitive Labs shares some examples of how technology has helped the health sector:

Best treatments
Technology helps the health sector through innovation in machines, medicines, and treatments that help save lives and improve people’s quality of life.

For example, deep brain stimulation surgery is a standard for treating Parkinson’s patients who do not respond to drugs, but it involves the use of electrodes in the brain through an operation that doctors do not recommend for high-risk patients. However, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new non-invasive treatment called Oxalate Neuron, which uses MRI to guide ultrasound waves directly to the most affected areas of the brain, destroying defective brain cells in the area. objective without requiring the opening of the skull.

Tele-medicine
Telemedicine can significantly impact some of the system’s most challenging issues, such as access to healthcare. Telehealth can change the current paradigm of care and allow better access and better results in a more cost-effective way through video calls or remote monitoring. Portable telemedicine kits that include a computer, digital stethoscope, examination camera, and other devices are also used to help make a more accurate diagnosis.

Easy-to-use medical devices
According to NDS, the market for portable medical devices is growing,  wearable technology being the one that attracts the most attention since society is increasingly interested in caring for and adopting healthier habits. “These devices, available in the form of watches or bracelets that are easy to use, collect data, helping doctors and patients to monitor and assess the user’s health, and understand their physical performance, as well as the rhythm and quality of sleep”.

Prediction of disease outbreaks
Data from internet searches are aggregated to create a bigger picture of the number of queries. Locations can be determined from online searches and a database can be created showing the increase in potential cases as well as the spread of the disease. “This is an important step to prevent and prepare for possible outbreaks of the flu, or other diseases, in the coming years,” they say from NDS.

Blue-dot, for example, is a Canadian company dedicated to monitoring the spread of infectious diseases with the help of artificial intelligence. Through an algorithm that collects and analyzes news information posted on web pages, the company was able to successfully predict that the Zia virus would spread in Florida, United States, six months before it happened in 2016.

“This breakthrough helps medical experts and governments respond to outbreaks quickly, as well as take preventative measures. The more people use the web to search for their own medical problems, the more information will be available to apply in scientific studies”, concludes NDS Cognitive Labs.