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NEW TECHNOLOGY


IoMT spurs home healthcare industry growth through wearables, e-skin devices The perceptible shift from reactive healthcare to proactive patient care is a direct result of the technological advances in sensor technologies and Internet of Medical Things (IoMT). Intelligent sensors are hastening the creation


of a fully connected ecosystem, opening up the possibility of remote or home healthcare becoming a mainstream healthcare model. De- vices such as wearables or e-skin sensors, which aid chronic disease management, and further improvements in the size, sensitivity, selectiv- ity, and communications capability of sensors are giving a huge boost to real-time remote monitoring. This escalating demand for remote patient monitoring, along with the introduction of advanced smartphones, mobile applications, fitness devices, and advanced hospital infrastruc- ture, are setting the stage for establishing smart hospitals all over the world. Frost & Sullivan’s recent analysis, Internet


of Medical Things Enabling Hospitals of the Future, explains the significance of IoMT in the healthcare sector by presenting key technology trends and enabling technologies, as well as analyzing the major factors influencing technol- ogy development and adoption. It presents the profiles of key stakeholders, business models, and important innovations, as well as examines growth opportunities based on patent scenario and market potential. Precision medicine made possible through


IoMT offers caregivers opportunities to develop unique therapies tailored to the medical needs and attributes of each individual. Moreover, as IoMT-based medical systems are built on a feedback loop, the system automatically repeats feedback for better patient results. Several technologies will have important roles


to play in enabling smart hospitals. Some of these include: • Big Data analytics: By using analytics to gain actionable insights, smart hospitals can employ digital prescriptive maintenance (DPM) of medi- cal equipment. Big Data analytics can analyze electronic health records (EHRs) and hospital networks, control data for public health research, and reduce hospital readmissions.


• Blockchain: Users of blockchain solutions can create modern models for managing and sharing medical records and patient health patterns within specified populations/communities. A blockchain network will bring together insurance companies, hospitals, and patients for hassle-free and well- integrated payments.


• AI: This technology collects the massive amounts of data generated by IoT to make inferences and predict medical diagnostics based on complex analysis algorithms. With the combination of IoT (for periodic control) and AI (for analysis process), connected healthcare monitoring devices will become “intelligent” over time.


PRODUCTS & SERVICES Providers empower,


flout frustrations, financial fretting by Rick Dana Barlow


et’s face it: Few want to go to a hospital, doctor’s office, ambulatory surgery center, imaging center or clinical laboratory, save perhaps for those actually working in those facilities for a living to serve patients as their calling.


L


Unfortunately, we’re all destined to get sick, injured and eventually die with periodic (if not annual) preventive maintenance-as- wellness-check-ups carefully distributed between those three tentpoles in the three- ringed circus of life. Surrendering to that inevitable reality then, we’re left with the obvious: If we absolutely have to participate in the healthcare experi- ence (and economists, financial wizards and industry reformers all insist that it’s necessary to cut costs and improve quality these days) then we have to resign ourselves to demands for and expectations of a “happy” experience.


Sourcing satisfaction


Happiness in a hospital setting can be translated into minimizing, if not eliminat- ing, any and all of life’s inconveniences. In today’s self-centered “what have you done for me lately?” versus “that was yesterday, this is now” instant-gratification, attention/ focus-challenged culture, healthcare organi- zations seek and strive to source and acquire those products and services that stress (wait, wrong word) … emphasize … convenience and comfort.


The shopping list can include unfettered interactive online access in patient and wait- ing rooms, high-tech video monitors, com- munication devices that summon doctors and nurses with haste or inject pain-killing drugs quickly, educational but entertaining videos on simple steps for billing and pricing to name a few. Much of patient engagement (and sat- isfaction for near-immediate access to information) centers on automation and electronics — namely telehealth/telemedi- cine ranging from physician appointments via computer, flat-screen television or mo- bile/smart phone to text reminders for tak- ing meds, wearable sensors and “robotic” doctor visits along the lines of InTouch


46 October 2018 • HEALTHCARE PURCHASING NEWS • hpnonline.com


Health’s array of technology. (Editor’s Note: See November 2005 HPN.)


Just like Supply Chain professionals want to buy the fewest number of products at the lowest possible prices, while suppliers want to sell the most products at the highest pos- sible prices, patients want to spend the fewest amount of convenient, pain-free days in the hospital and not worry about paying a dime because the insurance company will take care of everything.


As a result, Supply Chain executives and professionals have their work cut out for them as these product categories may more covertly tied to the organization’s revenue stream than what they’re used to sourcing. From high-tech kiosks and touchscreen panels to nifty apps and web portals to wear- able sensors and communication devices to virtual versus actual procedures to physi- cian robots and product bundles for home, Supply Chain may be pushed outside of its comfort zone that includes the traditional medical/surgical, laboratory and pathology, radiology, cardiology, orthopedics and other traditional product and service categories. These “more contemporary” areas remain a bit less specialized but closely tied to patient satisfaction scores that can determine the extent of payer reimbursement.


Patient perceptions


Clearly, it’s a whole new world to explore out there. Of course, some may argue that the world really hasn’t changed. The differ- ence now is that healthcare organizations are being held accountable for this behavioral trend and being compensated for customer service impressions and reactions via patient surveys. To wit, one study found that more than 80 percent of consumers surveyed expressed dissatisfaction with their healthcare experi- ence and, perhaps not surprisingly, “the happiest are those who interact with the system the least,” according to “Making the Shift: Healthcare’s Transformation to Consumer-Centricity,” written by a quartet of executives from Prophet, a global consulting firm that specializes in brand and customer


equip patients Don’t worry, be happy, may not be enough to


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