SOURCE : BARCLAYS RESEARCH
What ’ s more , new technologies will fundamentally change how we prevent , diagnose , and manage diseases , as well as enable efficiencies , such as AI radiology giving accurate reading results in seconds . Healthcare data will enable new services to reach the mainstream . Beyond technological advancements , regulation , funding related to healthcare , and largescale societal trends – both positive ( e . g ., wellness economy ) and negative ( e . g ., the opioid epidemic ) – round out the trends to watch .
AI is more than just a digital transformation trend in healthcare . AI represents the epitome of medical innovation . Chatbots and virtual health assistants are another AI-based technology that patients are becoming familiar with .
But the real power of AI can be best observed in areas like precision medicine , medical imaging , drug discovery , and genomics .
Cancer patients used to receive standard evidenced-based treatments with high failure rates . Now , thanks to AI ’ s sophisticated pattern recognition , these patients have access to personalised and precision medicine tailored to their genetic makeup and lifestyle .
What AI-powered computer programmes do for oncology , in a nutshell , is to analyse thousands of pathology images of various cancers to provide highly accurate diagnoses and predict the best possible anticancer drug combinations . And in medical imaging diagnostics , this technology helps radiologists spot details that escape the human eye .
For the biopharmaceutical industry , they ’ re using machine learning algorithms to shorten the drug development cycle . A recent finding showed that AI can slash early drug discovery timelines by four years against the industry average and generate cost savings of 60 percent .
Overall , AI is predicted to bring US $ 150 billion dollars in annual savings for the US healthcare economy by 2026 . These numbers alone should be enough to convince any CEO looking to transform their health organisation into reaching digital maturity that AI is worth the investment .
5G enhanced Mobile BroadBand ( eMBB ) is considered to be the driver of the new mobile industry revolution .
The 5G technology can run up to 100 times faster than the current cellular connection . It will make “ buffering ” a thing of the past , allowing for instantaneous streaming , downloading , and uploading .
For telemedicine , this means patients will experience better video conference quality , regardless of location . More importantly , doctors will have access to accurate , real-time imaging of organs , soft tissue , and bones , which in turn will greatly decrease the risk of misdiagnosis .
With the current 4G bandwidth , it takes hours for doctors to send large imaging files to a specialist . Once healthcare facilities switch to 5G networks ,
22 trends to watch in Health & Modern Science
Impact
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3D bioprinting
Microchip implants DNA data storage
Designer baby
Cloning Biohacking
Remote patient monitoring
Medical tourism
Myopia epidemic
Personalised insurance
US healthcare reform
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Likelihood the transmission process will take just a couple of minutes .
Predictive healthcare analytics Robotic surgery
Longevity tech Ai drug discovery
Personalised medicine
PAYG social care
Sleep tech
Let ’ s take a look at some practical examples with 5G :
• Doctors can use ultra-reliable connections to teleport to virtual environments and perform robotic surgeries .
• Augmented reality ( AR ) glasses would allow first responders to connect with faraway specialists and “ show ” them exactly what they are seeing in order to receive better guidance .
• 5G could also support medical training , enabling students to use virtual reality headsets to practice at their own pace the steps of complex surgeries .
• 5G-enabled drones could deliver life-saving medicine or devices to patients in hard-to-reach rural areas .
• The wearable medical device market is where 5G will cause the greatest disruption . Remote monitoring technology has yet to reach its full potential due slow network speeds and unreliable connections . With 5G , doctors will be able to instantaneously collect medical data , such as a vitals , electro-cardiograms , or physical activity levels from disparate sources and large groups of patients and make fast , reliable diagnoses .
This is preventative care at its best : fewer people developing chronic conditions and less money spent caring for patients in hospitals or in emergency rooms . All in all , 5G is guaranteed to play a major role in healthcare starting this year , and patients will be the first ones to feel the positive changes .
Dr Timothy Low is the Head of HealthCare Investment at Pavilion Capital and a member of the Board of Directors at Farrer Park Hospital in Singapore .
Antimicrobial resistance
Opioid epidemic
Wellness economy
AI radioilogy
GlobalHealthAsiaPacific . com NOVEMBER 2020
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