Tech Shaping the Post-Covid Healthcare Landscape

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5 Aug. 2021. The worldwide Coronavirus pandemic forced businesses and social care alike to rethink every area of their operations. For many months people couldn’t interact with companies in the same way as before. And everyone had to become innovative in the way they provided for customers.

This meant that many areas looked to the world of technology for an answer. New tech improves all businesses. From new options for processing transactions in the retail sector to clever ways of collecting data en masse like government track and trace systems. The introduction of technology into certain sectors has left many poised to prosper in a post-Covid world.

One of the most interesting sectors to embrace tech has to be healthcare. Technology has the agility to transform how care is provided and information collected on the population. Some tech adopted during the pandemic looks set to continue as we transition into a world where the virus doesn’t control us.

So what technology can we expect to become a mainstay of Healthcare? And how will it change the way care is provided?

Socially distanced appointments

During the pandemic, many healthcare providers adopted systems that allowed them to see patients from the safety of their own homes. If the same level of care can be provided from your home as if you visited a doctor’s surgery, why wouldn’t you continue this option?

Getting quick answers and guidance concerning your own health through virtual appointments fits neatly into modern life. It’s easy to put off a doctors appointment when life is busy. But it’s even easy to work one in if you can access medical care from your smartphone. Virtual meetings are particularly helpful in highly populated areas where there aren’t enough doctors to go around.

Using tech for appointments is not only more efficient; it also boosts consumer adoption as more people are prepared to interact with it. The population has more autonomy over their health and, as a result, become healthier.

Remote diagnostics and data

Personal diagnostic collectors like fitness trackers have been popular since well before the pandemic hit. But with people having to take care of themselves more and being more aware of their own well being, popularity has peaked. And the installation of track and trace systems, along with the importance of them emphasized by governments, has only increased uptake.

The pandemic showed us how important an abundance of easy to access health data is. Countries that used their track and trace information well handled Coronavirus outbreaks with more success and efficiency. Plenty of big companies like Apple and Google cottoned onto the importance of this data to both consumers and government. And they answered it by providing contact tracing apps.

Use of these applications will only increase. Primarily because they enable us to get back to some sort of semblance of life pre-Covid much quicker. And they chime in with the publics renewed interest in their personal health by giving them access to their own data with ease.

Online therapy

Extended periods of national lockdowns and months without human contact are two reasons why more people seek mental health support because of the pandemic. Couple that with huge numbers of redundancies and familial loss, and it’s easy to see why we’re experiencing a mental health crisis.

More and more people need access to robust mental health support. During the pandemic, many providers responded similarly to healthcare sectors and their socially distanced appointments. Apps like BetterHelp have put people in touch with counselors and therapists with the click of a few buttons.

While pre-Covid online therapy options were limited and riddled with compliance issues, the sheer demand for mental health support during the pandemic has forced the sector to adapt. The sharp uptake of online therapy options can only lead to bigger and better things. New uptake and continued use of the resources means that eventually, the overall mental wellbeing of the population increases and stabilizes. Additionally, it shows how important access to this care is and encourages continued funding and destigmatization.

Eldercare

Caring for the elderly has been targeted by creators of new technology long before the pandemic hit. But with Covid-19 proving lethal for over-60s, the need for technological solutions has heightened. Not only to provide robust care as the elder population isolates but to also provide peace of mind and continued interaction from loved ones.

The tech used to help the elderly stay at home was numerous. From contactless home deliveries and communication apps to keep them in touch to upgrades to care homes digital infrastructures. Because the need for elderly people to connect with people went from want to need in such a short space of time, the way care was provided had to change. But it’s not just staying in touch. New tech like remote diagnostics and virtual appointments made on-site facilities more robust.

Continued tech applications for eldercare enable them to stay in their homes for longer without the pressure of care on family or stretched healthcare services.

Artificial intelligence (AI)

There are huge implications of AI in Healthcare. And a plethora of applications. All of which have become all the more apparent thanks to the pandemic. Top of the applications would be to introduce robotic and autonomous healthcare assistants capable of working in hospitals, care homes, and personal homes. They reduce the likelihood of infection, create an extra pair of hands when workloads increase and companion AI can be introduced for the lonely elder population.

But there’s also AI that isn’t in the form of humanoid robotic companions and helpers. Artificial intelligence can be utilized to help track, predict, and prepare for future outbreaks of Coronavirus or other diseases. This can take the form of data-driven initiatives that will shape public transport networks, city planning, refuse collection, and many more.

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