How Mobile Apps and Big Data Can Revolutionize Healthcare

Healthcare apps are growing in numbers finally. Doctors are using healthcare apps to be more effective. On the other hand, patients are using apps to monitor specific aspects of their health, bridge the gaps in their medical care, and take complete responsibility about well-being. Everything can be done with a tap right from managing appointments, checking lab tests, selecting medicines, to collaborating with physicians from across the globe. It goes without saying that both doctors and patients are using mobile apps to stay in touch in a far more efficient manner.

Healthcare apps have made it easy for patients, physicians and caregivers to access information and services anytime, anywhere. Here are few advantages of healthcare apps:

Improved patient engagement

Very often healthcare is associated with complexity. It is not unusual to forget how many pills you need to take every day or when is your next trip to the doctor. Apps can shrug off the complexity associated with healthcare. It all boils down to simplicity and convenience which improves patient engagement levels.

Easy access to care

Thanks to technology there is no longer the need for patients and doctors to be in the exact same location. Mobile apps have made remote monitoring possible. It is easy for doctors to consult patients suffering from chronic diseases or living in far off areas. http://profsmythe.blogspot.com /2015/04/12-google-fit-developer-challenge-winner-apps.html" target="_blank">Healthcare apps and remote monitoring often eliminate the need of patients to visit physicians. In most cases, healthcare services can be delivered in a virtual manner.

Improved patient safety

Patient safety is paramount, no matter what. Healthcare apps take us one step forward towards managing health of patients. Whether it is scheduling appointments, monitoring medications chart, setting reminders for next visit to doctor, http://profsmythe.blogspot.com /2015/05/track-and-estimate-your-calories-burned.html" target="_blank">healthcare mobile apps can help you plan your schedule. With healthcare apps around there is no need to navigate through voluminous paper work. Just get all the information at a tap. Undoubtedly, this would be highly advantageous to manage patient safety.

Big Data & Wearables: Changing Healthcare

Smart phones were just the beginning. A new trend of wearable devices has come up such as Fitbit, Jawbone and Samsung Gear Fit. Millions of users are now using mobile technology to help us try and live healthier lifestyles. It allows users to track your progress and upload your data.

There is a lot of buzz about big data in healthcare. Big Data in healthcare is used to predict major epidemics and improve the overall quality of life and avoid preventable deaths. With the changing technology the focus is now shifting towards understanding patient as much as possible and picking warning signs of serious illness. In short, the core emphasis is on the fact that treatment is not only simple, but also less expensive. With Big Data, person’s data can be compared with others suffering from similar problems to highlight patterns and enable comparison. As a result, doctor will be able to view the likely result of prescribed treatment which is backed by data from other patients.

Another important partnership between Apple and IBM proves beyond a doubt that both companies are using big data health platform to allow iPhone and Apple Watch users to share data to IBM’s Watson Health cloud healthcare analytics service. The guiding principle behind this move is to gain medical insights from real-time activity and biometric data from millions of potential users.

Conclusion

Healthcare apps have brought about a paradigm shift in people’s perception of healthcare. Ultimately, everything boils down to making healthcare more accessible to patients and providing effective tools to manage case loads.