Technology And Medicine : Digitization Offers In The Health Sector

Technology is making great strides towards the future almost every day. The medical sector is now also benefiting greatly from digitization. Various apps provide information about your health.

Under certain circumstances, visits to the doctor can also be purely digital, and health insurance can be managed digitally. Even the federal government is banking on the future with its Corona app. Medicine and technology will probably continue to go hand in hand in the future. At this point, we have summarized the possibilities that are now available and how people can benefit from them.

E-Health And Digital Health

For the topic of “digital health” to be promoted, the  Government has already correctly recognized that, above all, digital infrastructures must be created and further developed. Digital technologies can then help to cope with future challenges, such as demographic change and the chronic shortage of doctors, particularly in rural areas.

The so-called e-health initiative is already one such approach that aims to advance other digital processes already running in the health sector in the future. It is now the case that people monitor their health themselves with so-called wearables, in the form of smartwatches and fitness bracelets. Patients search online for doctors, their office hours and illnesses. People are also increasingly finding out about healthy lifestyles online and via apps.

Apps On The Smartphone That Make You Healthy

The market for health programs is enormous and in demand. Fitness apps and lifestyle apps that are designed to help users achieve a healthy lifestyle are top-rated. They can count the steps and traditionally set small challenges. The keyword here is “playful”.

We feel that the interest in health and physical fitness has never been greater. This can also be seen in the current fitness market. Sports and exercise apps on smartphones playfully drive their users to exercise. Commands from the app, such as “Just 100 steps more” or “Just get up twice”, encourage you to pass daily personal challenges. The motivation remains at a high level.

Other health apps that are supposed to help you drink enough water during the day are also running successfully. People are relieved of the responsibility to think about something for themselves. At the same time, the competitive nature of such apps encourages them to become and stay active. yazio, for example, is an app that combines everything, i.e. fitness, health and nutrition. We may even look forward to the fact that there will be health apps like this on prescription soon.

Manage Insurance Digitally

Insurance is a significant area of ​​healthcare. Nobody can do without health insurance, be it private or statutory. To raise your insurance coverage to a digital level, this is where digital insurance managers, such as the CLARK app, come into play.

Here, patients not only find information about their insurance at a glance. All policies can be viewed in one place and are always with you on your smartphone if necessary. Based on this, the team behind the app makes suggestions for optimizing insurance coverage. 

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Medicine And Technology: Go To The Doctor Digitally

Shortly, we can assume that digital consultations with general practitioners can become the standard, even if this will not necessarily replace personal contact. Since 2020, doctors have been allowed to look after an unlimited number of patients during one consultation hour. This is particularly useful when it is only about agreements and no significant investigations.

If the patient needs a referral to a specialist, patients can do this easily over the Internet. If the patient has cold or flu symptoms, it is possible to take sick leave remotely. If only a follow-up recipe is required, just one click is enough. In this way, digital consultation hours could make the lives of doctors and patients much more straightforward.

To take advantage of the video consultation, everyone involved needs a certain amount of essential equipment. In the practices, computers with cameras and microphones are sufficient. Loudspeakers or headphones are also required. A smartphone or tablet and a suitable app are usually sufficient for patients.

Medicine And Technology: Digital Health Record

Meanwhile, the digital offer even goes beyond health apps and video doctor visits. There are currently several developers who offer so-called digital health records. Patients can enter the relevant health data in the app, save it and always have it at hand.

The advantage of this is obvious: when patients go to a new general practitioner for the first time or see a specialist, they do not yet know anything about their state of health. In most cases, an extensive self-assessment must first be filled out, but it does not yet cover all areas.

Digital health records offer the option of synchronizing all requested information and data with the doctor’s database. That saves a lot of work for everyone involved. Even in emergencies, doctors only have to look at the electronic health record and know immediately.

The disadvantage here, however, is that all health data must be stored in the cloud. So you run the risk of becoming a transparent patient. In addition, input errors and bugs are feared that could jeopardize appropriate treatment. Nevertheless, the experts believe that an electronic health record is an absolute must for the future health system.

Don’t exclude seniors

Our society is getting older and older, and older people, in particular, should benefit from services such as digital consultation hours. Unfortunately, the new technology is still somewhat alien to many senior citizens. Although computers and smartphones are part of our everyday lives, older people in particular often don’t know what to do with them. They are denied access to such digital offers. To prevent this from happening, politicians have to make enormous improvements. People have to learn to deal with medicine and technology to be able to use the offer.

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