The Future Will See You Now
Since the beginning, medicine has been long held by a priestly class; from Imhotep to Hippocrates and down to modern day medical practice. In fact, Hippocrates insisted that medical information should be concealed from patients.
At a time when people knew next to nothing about how life worked and believed rain was as a result as the gods crying or getting drunk and peeing, or the sun was a goddess and the moon was a lonesome suitor trying to woo her, or twin babies were evil and should be left to die, at a time when people did not know they could in fact think for themselves, it stands to reason why precious medical knowledge should be kept out of their reach — same way we keep medicines out of the reach of children today.
But the times have changed, now we know better, and we can think for ourselves, practicing medicine the same way it was practiced two millennia ago is starting to do us more harm than good. This is the case in both developing and developed countries alike.
Developed countries are assaulted by a barrage of chronic diseases and ageing populations, this increase in demand means increased expenditure and a higher need for the best technology can offer. In developing countries, chronic conditions like diabetes, asthma and hypertension are becoming household names in already under-resourced healthcare systems still struggling to provide the most basic of primary care.
The evidence suggests that the system is broken and needs rethinking and redesigning or design thinking. Neither the developed world nor the developing world can finance the health needs of their populations with the current system. There are simply not enough Doctors to cater for the healthcare needs of today. Neither world can “treat themselves” out of the problem. The time has come for the medical profession to call for help!
Often times patients and doctors fail to realize they stand on the same side, in the same team. Occasionally, this has led to “civil war” among patients and caregivers. Patients are swift to condemn failures of the healthcare system while allowing themselves all the time in the world to adjust their lifestyle choices that exacerbate their own health more directly and create a burden on already over laboured health systems.
Late presentation at health facilities, poor life style choices and complete oblivion to the workings of the healthcare system means patients do not know how healthcare works, what is working and what is not and how they can help get served better.
The solution? — Democratization of Medicine And Artificial Intelligence For Healthcare
These are not concepts for a distant future. These events are unfolding right now and you can be part of it. A number of organizations are committed to taking healthcare out of the hospitals and bringing healthcare into the hands of the patient. From Babylon Health and Your.MD in the UK to Kangpe, DoctorsHub and HelloCare right here in Nigeria.
Hellocare is our own foray in that direction. It is a small step and it is the first of many. At Hellocare, we are creating a future where Doctors patients and the best digital technology come together to achieve one common goal; keeping the client healthy — in this future, the patient no longer has to be patient.
Democratization of Medicine
Access to healthcare needs to become more open with as little medical lock-downs as possible. This will empower health consumers take more central roles and put their health needs and the needs of the people around them first. Having access to good health knowledge will help the patient to heal himself, help doctors become more proactive and in control of the narrative as opposed to being merely reactive.
We created Hellocare to help move this dialogue forward and to enable contribution to the dialogue from multiple perspectives. We want to arm patients with good health knowledge, and help them connect with doctors with a readiness to engage in productive discourse that will help both players achieve their common goal.
The doctor of the future will give no medicine but will interest his or her patients in the care of the human frame in a proper diet and in the cause and prevention of disease. — Thomas Edison.
Patients will no longer have to book appointments months in advance, then spend a whole day on a queue to see a doctor, only to have a battery of tests ordered to be carried out and the results brought at the next appointment. It’s a mentally draining process. In our part of the world we don’t even tell patients, “the doctor will see you now”. When they start bickering, we remind them why they are called “patients”.
Hellocare is looking to build a future where the democratization of healthcare will see diagnostics become a seamless process. We are optimistic that using didgitized technology we can leapfrog into the future where health monitoring and diagnostics will take place in the home and just as homes of today have inbuilt libraries and entertainment rooms, homes will no longer feel complete without a mini clinic with accessories for diagnostics and monitoring, like heart monitors, glucometers smart toothbrushes that check your teeth for holes and cavities, smart inexpensive eye test kits and other connected devices that will make up the internet of medical things— patients will know how to use these tools and have the results analyzed and interpreted by a synergy between artificial intelligence and healthcare providers.
Artificial Intelligence For Healthcare
In underserved and overburdened systems like ours, doctor shortages can be helped by artificially intelligent medical assistants that live in smart phones. Smartphones have found a way to becoming ubiquitous and are well on track to replacing the light bulb as the most commonly used piece of technology globally — we only need to cross our fingers for a few more years.
Artificially intelligent chatbots can now take questions, help users alleviate symptoms, make diagnosis and help patients book appointments with doctors for review. These systems will help reduce waiting times and the duration of consultations since most of the heavy lifting will have been done.
We are in the third healthcare revolution after public health and high tech hospital revolutions and this is driven by three forces — citizens, knowledge and digital technology, epitomized by the smart phone.
Have you met Orly? Orly is our little project that brings AI into medicine and still in its infancy, yet Orly dazzles reviewers. Orly is your medical assistant that lives in your pocket — or wherever you keep your smart phone, providing answers to your questions and guides you to solutions for your symptoms. Orly is using digital technology to learn from Medical Doctors how to make diagnosis and referrals.
The future is here, and it is ready when you are.
