How 5G wireless (and concomitant technologies) will revolutionize healthcare?

The need to have equitable access to quality healthcare is enshrined in the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which defines the developmental agenda of the UN for the next 15 years. In particular, the third SDG focuses on the need to “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages”. In this paper, we build the case that 5G wireless technology, along with concomitant emerging technologies (such as IoT, big data, artificial intelligence and machine learning), will transform global healthcare systems in the near future. Our optimism around 5G-enabled healthcare stems from a confluence of significant technical pushes that are already at play: apart from the availability of high-throughput low-latency wireless connectivity, other significant factors include the democratization of computing through cloud computing; the democratization of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cognitive computing (e.g., IBM Watson); and the commoditization of data through crowdsourcing and digital exhaust. These technologies together can finally crack a dysfunctional healthcare system that has largely been impervious to technological innovations. We highlight the persistent deficiencies of the current healthcare system and then demonstrate how the 5G-enabled healthcare revolution can fix these deficiencies. We also highlight open technical research challenges, and potential pitfalls, that may hinder the development of such a 5G-enabled health revolution

Alcuni abstract di articoli che trattano argomenti relativi all'eHealth

Non utile per esam

Personalised mobile services supporting the implementation of clinical guidelines

Telemonitoring is emerging as a compelling application of Body Area Networks (BANs). We describe two health BAN systems developed respectively by a European team and an Australian team and discuss some issues encountered relating to formalization of clinical knowledge to support real-time analysis and interpretation of BAN data. Our example application is an evidence-based telemonitoring and teletreatment application for home-based rehabilitation. The application is intended to support implementation of a clinical guideline for cardiac rehabilitation following myocardial infarction. In addition to this the proposal is to establish the patient’s individual baseline risk profile and, by real-time analysis of BAN data, continually re-assess the current risk level in order to give timely personalised feedback. Static and dynamic risk factors are derived from literature. Many sources express evidence probabilistically, suggesting a requirement for reasoning with uncertainty; elsewhere evidence requires qualitative reasoning: both familiar modes of reasoning in KBSs. However even at this knowledge acquisition stage some issues arise concerning how best to apply the clinical evidence. Furthermore, in cases where insufficient clinical evidence is currently available, telemonitoring can yield large collections of clinical data with the potential for data mining in order to furnish more statistically powerful and accurate clinical evidence

Trends in virtual reality technologies for the learning patient

NextMed convened the Medicine Meets Virtual Reality 22 (MMVR 22) conference in 2016. Since 1992, the conference has brought together a diverse group of researchers to share creative solutions for the evolving challenge of integrating virtual reality tools into medical education. Virtual reality (VR) and its enabling technologies utilize hardware and software to simulate environments and encounters where users can interact and learn. The MMVR 22 symposium proceedings contain projects that support a variety of learners: medical students, practitioners, soldiers, and patients. This report will contemplate the trends in virtual reality technologies for patients navigating their medical and healthcare learning. The learning patient seeks more than intervention; they seek prevention. From virtual humans and environments to motion sensors and haptic devices, patients are surrounded by increasingly rich and transformative data-driven tools. Applied data enables VR applications to simulate experience, predict health outcomes, and motivate new behavior. The MMVR 22 presents investigations into the usability of wearable devices, the efficacy of avatar inclusion, and the viability of multi-player gaming. With increasing need for individualized and scalable programming, only committed open source efforts will align instructional designers, technology integrators, trainers, and clinicians. Curriculum and InstructionCurriculum and Instructio

A New Clinical Model for Primary Care: A Critical Component of Healthcare Innovation Zones

The overall aim of this research and design project is to develop a primary care setting that responds to the current changes in the healthcare system and accommodates predicted developments in the future. It takes advantage of opportunities created by the Affordable Care Act and initiatives started under the new Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation. One of these includes the creation of Healthcare Innovation Zones as a way to bring integrative, comprehensive health services to a wider population through the network of a teaching hospital, physicians, and other clinical entities. The proposed ambulatory care setting is a model for this clinical entity conceived to reconsider critical components of a Healthcare Innovation Zone. Through the process of literature review and case study analysis, existing problems and evolving trends in both the healthcare and architectural contexts were identified. Following this process, guidelines were developed that outline architectural design criteria fundamental to this proposed type of primary care clinical entity; these include gradient zones, transparency, simplified circulation, modular planning, pod groupings, open team hubs, standardized care rooms, and transformable space. A model program and site selection criteria are also developed that incorporate elements critical to defining a Healthcare Innovation Zone and completing one within the specific context of downtown Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The new model will represent an innovative but attainable design that places the patient at the center of a collaborative network of care providers affiliated with Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. The spirit of collaboration is intended to bring together the public, patients, providers, and medical students as all users of the space take part in educational experiences. Unlike traditional outpatient clinics, this new setting is conceived as a highly accessible, integrated part of people\u27s overall lifestyle, merging public, educational, and medical spheres. The facility will function as a support center to informed, active patients and caring, proactive providers who are concerned with preventive measures and comprehensive management, rather than merely reactive treatment. It will be engaged and complimented by forward-thinking individuals who stand at the forefront of developing new practices and technologies to improve the individual\u27s lifestyle. The center has the potential to become a replicable model that other communities could adopt to further a primary care revolution and ensure higher-quality healthcare to the greater society