How will the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence change the doctor-patient relationship?

Health care is never an easy topic to discuss. Whether it's in the doctor's office or the comfort of your own home, talking about health can be overwhelming. Most people don't like going to the doctor. Anxiety about the doctor discovering a problem or being embarrassed to ask questions are some of the reasons why people prefer to make an appointment. Plus the primary care physician spends a little more than 15 minutes with the patient, so there's not enough time to discuss issues or delve into any test results.

We usually only discuss our health during our annual doctor’s visit. So check-ins are important, but they only provide a snapshot of what's going on. We don’t have the habit of monitoring our health every day, nor do we have the habit of remote monitoring. Continuously tracking a patient's vital signs helps patients and doctors better understand their health status. That’s why connected devices are playing an ever-increasing role in everyday healthcare.

In fact, by 2022, 30% of doctors are using remote monitoring equipment, up from 12% in 2016, and nearly double from 2019. With the help of artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things, devices such as smart patches, wearable wristbands or smart watches have made it easier to track indicators such as pulse, temperature, oxygen saturation, blood pressure, respiratory rate and more. This ongoing tracking is changing the dynamic between patients and doctors, providing a holistic view of a patient's health rather than just a once-a-year snapshot.

Internet of Things helps track patients anytime, anywhere

The Internet of Things is helping connected devices monitor patients and implement care anytime, anywhere. These devices are essential when it comes to continuously collecting reliable health data.

For example, diabetics who cannot rely on regular testing use IoT devices to continuously monitor their blood sugar levels. From non-invasive glucose monitoring devices, to small spectrometers placed under a patient’s skin, all the way to self-administered insulin, the Internet of Things is helping patients stay healthy and control their insulin levels. Women facing high-risk pregnancies can use connected devices to track changes in maternal and fetal health. No matter the situation, IoT devices can save lives. Between telemedicine, wearables, and smart home devices, seniors are using IoT to connect with their doctors in the comfort of their own homes, or for remote monitoring in certain situations, and reduce the need for in-person appointments or appointments that may not be possible.

The Internet of Things enables medical professionals to provide the best possible care. As people become more health-conscious, there is an increasing use of connected devices to monitor patient health. Access to ongoing, real-time data can help doctors get a clearer picture of a patient's health than just a fraction of the time during an annual checkup. This rich data helps physicians make better decisions and improve the quality of care provided.

AI MAKES CRITICAL DECISIONS

Artificial intelligence is helping to change people’s lives through more accurate diagnosis and improved treatment options. Data collected by connected devices and processed by artificial intelligence ultimately helps doctors make critical decisions quickly.

The first step in understanding how artificial intelligence can help doctors and patients is to understand the different types of artificial intelligence and how they will work:

Computer Vision AI enables computers to create images from digital images or videos gain a high-level understanding. EndoBRAIN and EndoBRAIN-EYE are examples of how this type of AI can be used on microscope sensors to capture images and video during colonoscopies. Thanks to this technology, a public database of colonoscopy videos was created and is available upon request.

Wearable sensors worn directly on the skin can collect and analyze health data in real time, which goes well beyond the scope of smart patches. A new skin-like device under development may detect emerging health problems before the first symptoms appear. The device may also provide personalized analysis of collected health data without the need for a doctor.

Remote patient monitoring (RPM) devices use artificial intelligence to capture real-time data and combine it with clinical data to remotely monitor patients and notify doctors of adverse drug reactions or serious changes in biomarkers. AliveCor, for example, is leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning on ECG sensors to help doctors and patients receive personalized heart data anytime, anywhere to better understand how to manage their heart health.

Artificial intelligence’s ability to analyze large data sets and generate impactful insights is helping track and treat patients’ medical conditions regardless of their location, allowing healthcare professionals to do so within two visits Monitor patients closely between visits or when in-person or telehealth visits are not possible. These technologies will never replace physicians, instead they are designed to help enhance and complement the patient journey, with the ultimate goal of making patients healthier.

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