Innovation in healthcare doesn't happen overnight, but it happens very quickly in today's digital world. Some people progress faster than you think.
We're not talking about theory or the breakthrough topics we expect to see in the next decade. These technologies are already a reality for many physicians and are expected to grow rapidly over the next 1-3 years.
are you ready? Let's check it out.
1. Artificial Intelligence (AI) Medical Secretary
You may already be using this or at least have heard of it.
Physician burnout is a serious problem, with many doctors spending two hours on paperwork for every patient encounter. But some doctors, like Dr. Gregory Ator, chief medical information officer at the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas, have found a better way.
“I've been using it for nine months and it's really changed my life,” Ator said of Abridge, an AI helper that transcribes and summarizes conversations with patients. “Now I can walk into a room, put my phone anywhere, and just listen.” He estimates the technology saves him three to 10 minutes per patient. I did. “With 20 patients per day, he saves about two hours,” he said.
Bonus: Patients can “get the doctor's full attention, instead of just looking at the top of your head while you're on the computer,” Ator said. “I've yet to have a single patient who didn't think that was a positive thing.”
Several companies, including Ambience Healthcare, Augmedix, Nuance and Suki, are already selling these AI devices, and they offer more than just transcription, said Mayo, which is overseeing Mayo's AI rollout. said John D. Halamka, MD, President of Clinic Platform. He also creates treatment and billing notes and updates data in the electronic medical record.
“It creates a document based on listening to conversations between doctors and patients,” Halamka explained. “I am very optimistic about leveraging emerging AI technologies to enable all clinicians to practice with the highest license possible.”
Patricia Garcia, M.D., associate clinical information officer for ambulatory care at Stanford Health Care, spent much of the last year co-running the medical center's AI scribe pilot program and is extremely impressed with the technology. “We are hopeful that this will happen,” he said. Within the next 12 to 18 months, it will become more widely available as an option for clinicians who wish to use it. ”
2. Three-dimensional (3D) printing
3D printed organs may not be a reality anytime soon, but the future is here for 3D printed prosthetics and implants, from dentures to spinal implants to prosthetic fingers and noses.
“The use of 3D printing technology across orthopedics will rapidly increase over the next few years,” said Atlanta orthopedic surgeon Risin J. Kadakia, MD. “This is becoming more commonplace, and not just at large academic institutions.More and more providers are using 3D There will be a focus on the use of printing technology.”
Kadakia has experienced this firsthand with patients at Emory Orthopedics and Spine Center. A female patient developed avascular necrosis of the talus due to a fracture sustained in a serious motor vehicle accident. Immobilizing her ankle and subtalar joint repairs the damage, but limits her mobility and changes the way she walks. So instead, in August 2021, Kadakia and her colleague, orthopedic surgeon Jason Barito, MD, created a 3D-printed cobalt-chrome talar implant for her.
“This allowed her to maintain range of motion in her ankle and move faster than with subtalar and ankle fusion surgery,” Kadakia said.
This technology also plays a role in customized medical devices (patient-specific tools for increased precision) and 3D printed anatomical models built to an individual patient's exact specifications. Mayo Clinic has already installed his 3D modeling units in three states, and other hospitals are following suit. This model not only helps doctors prepare for complex surgeries, but can also significantly reduce costs. In his 2021 study at Durham University, he reported that 3D models helped reduce surgical time by 1.5 to 2.5 hours in long surgeries.
3. Drone
For patients who are unable to travel to a pharmacy to pick up their prescriptions due to distance or lack of transportation, drones offer an attractive solution because they can deliver medications to customers' backyards or doorsteps.
Some include WellSpan Health in Pennsylvania, Amazon Pharmacy, and the Cleveland Clinic, which announced a partnership with drone delivery company Zipline and plans to begin delivering prescriptions across Northeast Ohio by 2025. of companies and hospitals are already experimenting with drones.
Health systems are just beginning to explore the potential for drone delivery of everything from research samples to medical and surgical supplies, with defibrillators arriving at sick patients' doorsteps before emergency medical technicians arrive. Also includes moving parts.
“For many health care providers, collecting a sample from a patient means that the sample has to wait for hours while a courier picks up all the samples within the facility and transports them to an outside facility for processing.” said Hilary Brenzel, Zipline's head of US healthcare. Practice.
According to the 2022 survey, american nurses journal, 71% of nurses said medical courier delays or errors negatively impacted their ability to provide patient care. But with drone delivery, “test samples can be sent for immediate processing on demand, allowing for faster diagnosis and treatment, and ultimately better results.” he said.
4. Portable ultrasound
Within the next two years, portable ultrasound machines (pocket-sized devices that connect to smartphones or tablets) will become the “stethoscopes of the 21st century,” said Dr. Abhilash Harendranathan, assistant professor in the university's Department of Radiology and Diagnostic Imaging. states. Originally from Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
AI makes these devices easy to use, allowing clinicians with minimal imaging training to capture clear images and understand results. Harindranathan developed the Ultrasonic Arm Injury Detection Tool, a portable ultrasound device that uses AI to detect fractures.
“We plan to introduce this technology into emergency departments so triage nurses can use it to perform rapid tests to detect wrist, elbow and shoulder fractures,” he said. .
More pocket-sized scanners like this could “transform the way diagnostic care is delivered in rural and remote areas” and “reduce wait times in crowded emergency departments,” Harindrana said. Mr. Sun said. Bill Gates believes in portable ultrasound enough that last September, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded GE Healthcare $44 million to develop the technology for under-resourced communities. did.
5. Virtual reality (VR)
When RelieVRx was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2021 as the first VR therapy for chronic low back pain, the technology was being used in only a few Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities. But thousands of VR headsets are now deployed in more than 160 VA medical centers and clinics across the country.
“The VR experience includes pain neuroscience education, mindfulness, soothing and relaxing distractions, and the important skills of calming the nervous system,” said RelieVRx Director, Institute for Pain Relief Innovation at Stanford University, who designed RelieVRx. says Beth Darnall, Ph.D. She predicts VR will soon become mainstream. That's not only because of the growing evidence that VR works, but also because of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which recently issued Medical Common Procedure Coding System codes for VR. “This billing infrastructure will accelerate adoption and adoption,” she says.
Josh Sackman, president and co-founder of AppliedVR, which developed RelieVRx, said hundreds of hospitals across the country are already using the technology to treat everything from the pain of childbirth to dead tissue in wounds.
“Hundreds more unique applications are likely to be introduced in the coming years. [for VR] “This modality can address multiple clinical indications. This modality is scalable and has the power to improve cost and quality of care by reducing reliance on pharmacological interventions.” he said.
He said hospital systems like Geisinger and Cedars-Sinai have already found unique ways to implement the technology, such as using VR to reduce “anxiety” during imaging services.
Other VR innovations have already been introduced, from Smileyscope, a children's VR device proven to make blood draws and intravenous insertions less painful (cleared by the FDA last November), to Cedars-Sinai's launch Several VR platforms have been used in recent months for applications ranging from gastrointestinal issues to mental health treatment. “There may already be 1,000 hospitals using some form of VR,” said Brennan Spiegel, MD, director of health services research at Cedars-Sinai.
