The Internet is transforming every part of our existence. From our personal affairs to our business concerns, the Internet is making work done easily and in real time. The Internet has transfused every sector of the economy and has found relevance on all fronts. Among the various sectors hit by the wave of change powered by the Internet is the health care industry.
The Internet of Things (IoT) is a “concept reflecting a connected set of anyone, anything, anytime, anyplace, any service and any network”, (Islam et al, 2017). IoT involves the interaction between machines/devices to solve problems or automate a task without human intervention. At the core of the IoT-base health care are various medical devices, sensors, diagnostic and imagining devices that are interlinked through the web. Examples of IoT in healthcare are below:
Ingestible Sensors:
The main purpose of the technology is to monitor adherence. This technology works through sensors in the body which pick up small voltages produced when data can be accessed. This system which is a product of Proteus Digital Health is one way of reducing the non-compliance to a prescription which the WHO estimates to stand at 50%.
Depression-fighting Apple Watch Application:
Takeda alongside Cambridge Cognition is testing the use of an Apple Watch Application to help patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). The application is designed to monitor and assess cognitive function.
Electronic Health Record:
This technology has reduced the burden of paper storage in the health care system. With this, it is now easy to transfer a patient’s medical record from one hospital to another and to also better understand a patient’s condition.
Connected Inhalers:
These devices allow the healthcare practitioner to monitor if a patient is compliant with their inhaler use. Propeller’s Breezhaler device makes it possible to passively record and transmit data as pertaining to a patient’s complaint to an inhaler.
Technology has long been an integral part of health care but none has had the ability to integrate the various processes and devices as the IoT. Ultrasounds, thermometers, glucose monitors, electrocardiograms, and more are all starting to become connected and letting patients track their health. With IoT in healthcare, it is now possible for the physician to monitor the condition of his patient at home right from the comfort of his office. IoT may be at its infant stage in the health care sector but it will definitely be a propeller in few years to come.
