Innovation in Medicine: The Use of Technology in Healthcare

Introduction

The world around us is changing at a pace unmatched in the human history. So, applying technology and accelerating innovations to find new solutions for old and emerging challenges are of utmost importance now. Healthcare services comprises of hospitals, medical devices, telemedicine, medical tourism, health insurance and medical equipment among many others.

Healthcare industry has become one of India’s largest sectors - both in terms of employment and revenue generation. India spends around 5% of its GDP on health, and yet, the current state of the healthcare system faces significant systemic challenges. To overcome some of these, strategic planning by the government for the provision of healthcare services are urgently required. Also technological innovations and new ideas can only work if designed with a clear understanding of the current set-up’s drawbacks.

“Old ways won’t open new doors” - A common saying

Innovations in health sector

The trends in advancements in medicine were visible from nineteenth to twentieth century. Wherein initially the focus was on improving the nutritional status and later people became aware of the concept of sanitation and hygiene and adopted preventive methods for tackling deadly diseases. This was also the time of development of immunisation and vaccines for diseases like polio, etc. It was this era when people subsequently realised the importance of health and hygiene. Also, they were able to understand what all factors caused disease and illness.

This was followed by improvements in machines for easier functioning of doctors and subsequently led to advancements in surgeries and various surgical procedures. With the current innovations in healthcare sector quality of life and the life expectancy has increased and mortality rates have decreased all over the world. These innovations are numerous and have affected all fields of medicine.

In neuroscience, the technological advancements of CT scan and MRI have helped in understanding the blood supply and working of brain and now along with other forms of imaging techniques we can even detect brain cancers at early stages. Recently, a key gene causing microcephaly (a disorder marked by smaller than normal brain size and mental retardation) has been detected. Immunotherapy is another treatment modality with the potential to significantly extend survival for cancer patients, without any negative side effects or heavy pricing like that of traditional chemotherapy. It helps our immune system fight cancer.

Perhaps the biggest contribution of medical innovations is in the field of genetics and research. Gene sequencing is used in molecular biology to study genomes and the proteins they encode. Information obtained using this allows us to identify changes in genes, associations with genetic disorders, identify potential drug targets and also the population at risk. There are many more such innovations and their contribution to diagnostics and treatment is tremendous.

Another medical innovation which has gained popularity recently is Artificial intelligence. It deals with the simulation of intelligent behaviour in computers. The capability of a machine to imitate intelligent human behaviour and perform tasks with greater speed, accuracy, and lower resource utilization.

The use of new surgical procedures with latest technology has decreased the post-operative risks in heart surgeries or any other major surgery. Many disorders that in the past required extensive operations can now be treated with laparoscopic interventions. This has resulted in decreased time, increased efficiency and decreased costs for the procedure.

The Robotic surgery is also gaining a lot of attention because it is minimally invasive surgery and involves a lot of precision, decreased blood loss, less pain and quick healing. Recently robotic surgery of thorax was being performed in Delhi.

In the current scenario where, diabetic patients are on a rise, it is very important to discover new treatment modalities for them. Apart from the drug therapy, many new surgical procedures have been developed in this respect. Biocon (leading pharmaceutical company) has not only developed Insulins in India but has also developed two affordable novel biologics for the benefit of cancer and psoriasis patients in India.

Health and information technology

It is one of the less explored areas in the health sector. IT is used mainly in corporate hospitals or big pharmaceutical companies. Although now the trends are changing. Among all the medical innovations, the use of TELEMEDICINE has been perhaps the most beneficial to the patients as well as the doctors. It involves the use of telecommunication and information technology to provide clinical health care from a distance. It is the best way to treat patients who live far away from health care facilities. It potentially reduces hospital visits and travel time. The technology is also useful in medical education and training of doctors and paramedical staff located in remote locations in the country.

Next we have Biosensors and trackers which are basically used to monitor health. A clinically applied biosensor is used to monitor blood glucose levels in diabetic patients. Apart from these, Electronic Health Record (EHR) is finding its way into many health care settings. It systematically collects electronic health information about individual patients, records it in digital format which can be shared across different health care centres.

Digital health knowledge resource is a concept where contents are stored in digital format in digital medical library. It is designed to assist physicians, health professionals, students, and medical researchers in finding health and scientific information to improve, update, assess or evaluate health care.

Medical tourism

Another innovation which has gained popularity in recent times is Medical Tourism. It refers to people traveling to a country other than their own to obtain medical treatment. Medical tourism is a growing sector in India. The primary reason that attracts people from other parts of the world travel to India is cost-effectiveness, and also the treatment facilities offered are at par with developed countries.

In this respect, cardiac surgeon Dr. Devi Shetty is striving to make access to quality healthcare non-discriminatory. He is the founder of Narayana health, Bangalore and has successfully made medical care accessible and affordable to the masses. His hospital offers heart surgeries at a fraction of what it costs in developed countries and is a medical Mecca for patients from Africa and other parts of the world. The cost of open heart surgery in this hospital is quite less as compared to the ones in America, and the success rates are as good as in the best American hospitals.

The rise in technical advancements have led to a hike in costs at which these facilities are available to the customers. This has increased the imbalance between the rich and the poor. Many people from the rural areas or those belonging to weaker sections of the society cannot access these medical innovations because they are too costly. But these are in the best interests of humanity and in the long run these innovations and advancements may raise our quality of life and standard of living.