The future of healthcare is not in the confrontation of people and machines

As part of this material, we, in the Wirex team of multifunctional service that performs instant money transfers worldwide without banking intermediation, decided to go beyond the theme of payment innovations that we are used to and tried to figure out how widespread digitalization can affect other areas of modern society.

Over the past few years, the digital revolution in medicine has significantly helped advance automation, artificial intelligence, and even surgical robots. Whether it is a virtual specialist recording data on drug intake, or sensors that monitor symptoms, digital technologies will undoubtedly move the industry forward. However, there are fears that they will also replace living employees in the medical field.

This is not what we would like to face. And not something that really seems inevitable.

In fact, the health care system is moving away from a model based on manual labor and technology, and moving on to a model that relies on digital tools and human resources.
')
In the future, companies that “put people first”, complement human capabilities with new technologies, and do not replace people with machines, will be at the forefront of healthcare. Technologies will expand medicine and facilitate decision-making, freeing up space for the development of personal qualities and social skills that make up the individual elements of the health care system.

Accenture Consulting Agency identifies five major factors that shape the new health care system, which places a person first. Among them are intelligent automation, mobile labor resources, platform economy, predictable transformation and trust in digital technologies. Together, these five pillars enhance the role of man in health care: the role of doctors, administrators, researchers, payers and, of course, patients.

Let's look at intelligent automation. About 70% of managers in healthcare are increasing investments in artificial intelligence, 69% - in machine learning. For doctors, intelligent automation extends diagnostic capabilities, speeds up the correct diagnosis. In every part of the healthcare system, from laboratories to post-hospital care, sensors collect data that can be used by doctors, nurses and carers, as well as by the patients themselves, to improve treatment outcomes.



And let intelligent automation help isolate useful information from vast amounts of data, the human resource is still an essential part of the equation. As the president and CEO of Humana Corporation Bruce Broussard recently noted :

“No technology can replace a smile or a helping hand. Doctors, nurses and family members cannot be excluded from the system by adding learning machines to it. ”

In the field of mental health services, where demand is high and supply is not enough, SilverCloud applies intelligent automation to provide therapeutic assistance to patients online on all available platforms - mobile phones, tablets and PCs. Over the past decade, SilverCloud realized that a combination of automation and human capabilities can significantly improve the results of therapy.

We now turn to mobile labor resources. It is expected that by 2019, about 42% of health workers will become contractors, freelancers and temporary workers. Telemedicine allows service medical companies to serve a large number of patients, regardless of physical location. By 2018, the Kaiser Permanente medical consortium plans to transfer work with the majority of its patients to virtual rails. At the same time, a survey conducted by American Well , a private telemedicine company, showed that two out of three patients consider video consultation acceptable.

In response to the demand for virtual services, American Well launched Exchange's telemedicine service, which enables providers of medical services to serve patients online. Clients have access to a 24-hour service on any platform (PC or mobile device), in turn, vendors can integrate Exchange services into their own applications and kiosks. And here comes the third factor - the platform.


Mobile application "telemedicine service Exchange"

The platform economy is already transforming the health care system and other industries. 39% of managers in this area believe that business models built on the use of platforms will be the basis of commercial success. And industry analysts expect a tenfold increase in available APIs by 2021.

Jiff is a company that provides a platform for medical services and specializes in corporate medical programs, collects data from disparate sources and generates offers tailored to the specific needs and preferences of employees of client companies. The service also uses predictive analytics to provide personalized recommendations for prevention and a healthy lifestyle. Derek Newell, CEO of Jiff, notes the following:

"Predictive analytics provides employers with a promising method of reducing medical costs ... However, any prediction without any action from company employees has zero value."

Just as Jiff decides on a revolution in traditional corporate medical programs, other companies are at the forefront of a predictable industry transformation. 86% of managers in health care feel the need to reconsider their approaches to doing business before competitors overtake them. Please note that the traditional health care system, represented by hospitals, health insurance and biological research centers, is experiencing serious competition from start-ups and the digital business. And all because consumers of services, especially the generation of the millennium, consider innovative services more accessible, transparent and efficient.



One such innovative company, Zipdrug, challenges traditional pharmacies. In particular, the average time spent in the queue at a US pharmacy is 45 minutes. Zipdrug customers can order prescription drug delivery by simply downloading the app and placing an order in it.

And here we are moving smoothly to the role of trust in digital technology. Accenture estimates that over the next five years, hospitals will lose about $ 305 billion due to cyber attacks. The personal medical data of every thirteenth patient (or 25 million people) will be stolen. Innovative companies that form personalized medicine, like no one else, are interested in increasing consumer confidence in digital technologies. Although for 65% of those who use medical services, the possibility of electronic access to medical information outweighs the risk of potential data theft.

A new solution that allows to increase confidence in digital technologies - blockchain - a decentralized public register of all transactions in the p2p network, which, using cryptographic principles, fixes who got access to this or that information. At the same time provides the necessary anonymity. Blockchain is actively used in Estonia - a country that has become the leader in e-government development. Each resident has a digital identity that ensures the safety of medical records .

In a recent report, the British government assessed the role of the blockchain in protecting electronic personal medical records (EMPS):

“The technology has the potential to improve the quality of medical care by improving and authenticating the provision of services, as well as by working safely with records in accordance with established rules. Technology allows consumers to control access to personal records and see who worked with them. ”

These five factors form the necessary basis for improving the staffing of the industry, creating a system of virtual medical services, self-care and personalized medical briefing, on-demand delivery of prescription drugs, and EPMZ protection. With their introduction into the health care system, physicians will be able to use digital technologies to further modify and complement human labor, personalize services and free up resources for use in areas where they are most in demand.

As a result, time will be reduced and the accuracy of diagnosis will increase, medical literacy will increase, waiting times in queues will decrease, and patient routes within the health care system will be simplified. Simply put, by combining the capabilities of people and machines, doctors will be able to work with maximum efficiency and truly take care of our health.

Continue to follow the blog updates of the Wirex blockchain service and learn about technologies that are gradually changing our service industries.