Technology
HealthTech: empowering clinicians and patients
Fiona Kirk, a former nurse and now a clinical consultant for Ascom, explores how technology is not only enabling better health outcomes, slicker clinical processes and supporting clinicians, it’s also empowering patients to take greater ownership of their health and wellbeing.
Technology is very much at the heart of present- day healthcare. As well as transforming clinical environments and processes, it is enabling people to become a more active participant in the management of their own health. It’s a wonderful side-effect of healthcare’s
digital transformation and, as a former nurse with the NHS for more than 20 years, one I’m delighted to see. For years, those of us in healthcare have
battled to overcome the hurdle of encouraging more patients to be engaged in their own health and care. It’s always been a challenge.But now, with technology, we have a chance to make that a reality. What is more, patients want it just as much as those delivering their care. Patients are becoming more connected to
their own care now they have access to their own health records, with wearables and apps enabling them to track their stats 24-hours a day. The appetite to understand more about our own health is growing at a rapid rate, with one third of the general population and 53% of people with chronic conditions accessing the NHS app to look at their personal health information.1 According to the same survey – carried out
by Google Health and the NHS Confederation – 83% of adults already use some form of technology to manage their health. A number which increases to nearly 9 in 10 for those living with a long-term condition. For those managing chronic conditions especially, feeling empowered is extremely important and key to ensuring better health outcomes.
A deeper understanding of chronic conditions New research by Imperial College London and the University of Leicester revealed that nearly 15% of people in England are currently living with two or more long-term health conditions.2 That is a staggering number and it’s only set to increase, with the Health Foundation predicting
that 9.1m people in the country will be living with a major illness by 2040. That is an increase of 2.5m people compared to figures from 2019. When it comes to the management of those
with chronic conditions, technology can play a life-changing and, potentially, a life-saving role. Often when a patient with a chronic condition comes to the NHS, they are already at the point of crisis. But with Remote Patient Monitoring technology, such as wearables, clinicians can be constantly connected to patients and vice versa. With this technology, near real-time health insights can be shared, which makes earlier intervention possible and avoids crisis. In addition, this technology is helping to improve patient quality of life and reducing pressure on emergency care and hospital admissions. Health technology that can communicate, and
share information and insight, will transform care delivery and patient outcomes significantly. This will help break down the silos that the physical NHS operates within currently. Importantly, with this technology, the flow
of information isn’t just in the direction of clinicians. It’s also being shared with the patient
and can provide reassurance to their loved ones who may be providing care too. That is empowering for patients. As a former nurse with more than two decades of experience in healthcare, the importance of giving patients ownership of their health and inviting them to be an active participant in its management is vital. I also recognise that part of your role as a nurse is often extended to taking care of the patients’ loved ones too, when they are in health crisis. Health wearables and remote monitoring devices can provide reassurance for more than just the patient; it’s empowering for those caring for them too. Furthermore, it’s not just isolated to people with long-term conditions or those who have been provided with medical grade wearable technology – most of the UK population is also already tracking their health in one way or another.
More informed patients We’ve seen a massive boom in consumer health technology in recent years. From people
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