Disruptive Potential of IoT in Healthcare

Overview

The healthcare industry in the United States is a prime target for disruption due to its enormous size and projections of its continued growth:

 

The country spent $3.4 trillion on health care in 2016, a number that is projected to grow to $5.5 trillion by 2025. The study, by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, projects that the average growth in health spending will be even faster between 2016 and 2025, at 5.6 percent per year, driven by inflation in the cost of medical services and products and an aging population.[1]

 

One technology that may drive that disruption is IoT, with its potential to reduce costs through automation, improve asset tracking, improve process controls and extend healthcare outside of the hospital. An IDC study in April this year found that 39% of healthcare provider organizations were piloting or in production with IoT initiatives. The same study found:

 

73.3% of providers and 84% of payers report that they are prepared or very prepared for participating in the IoT in healthcare, with the majority of respondents reporting IoT is or will be mainstream by 2017.[2]

 

 

IoT in the Hospital

There are many current and future uses of IoT (also known as telemedicine, telehealth and connected health) in the hospital. Some of the current applications of IoT in this setting are:

• RFID tracking of assets
• Temperature and environment monitoring of lab samples
• Remote patient monitoring
• Smart pharmacy management
• Tracking location of staff and patients in a hospital

 

While each of these applications can provide tactical benefits, connecting them may enable important new advantages. Consider the following scenario:

 

The nurse who is in the room pushes a heart attack alarm button. A message goes to the nearest heart attack team based on the nurse and the team’s actual location within the hospital (RTLS infrastructure). Elevators get re-allocated to the floors where the heart attack team is located (building applications). The light in the patient room is turned on and shades closed (building applications). The nurse gets an estimated time of arrival of the heart attack team. The digital sign on the patient room door changes color and a note is automatically made in the patient journal (clinical system — EHR). The location of the necessary medical equipment is brought to the attention of the relevant personnel (medical application and RTLS.)

 

The nurse uses sensors, such as a patch, which she places on the patient, and the relevant data is transmitted to the flat screen in the patient room, as well as to the tablets and smartphones of the heart attack team.[3]

 

Connecting smart devices throughout the hospital can not only provide automation, but may save lives as well. In addition, organizations could process data collected by these smart devices through machine learning models to detect anomalies or identify opportunities for improvement.

 

IoT for Home Healthcare

Another setting where IoT can significantly improve healthcare is the home. There is a growing trend of ‘aging in place’, where aging individuals and their families prefer to provide needed assistance at home rather than in an assisted-living facility or rest home. IoT devices can facilitate this type of care while enabling privacy and independence for both the aging individual and their caregivers. A recent Wired article shares some examples of how this is being done today:

 

Wearable devices and home health monitoring devices assisting patients is a common thing now. Chatty medical devices are extremely appealing for patients of any age range. The devices are capable enough to transmit vital sign data from a patient home to the hospital staff. It allows them to have a real time monitoring of patient’s health. These devices use wirelessly connected glucometers, scales, heart rate and blood pressure monitors.[4]

 

Potential for Disruption

The growing number of older people in the United States, along with the rapid rise in healthcare costs and the advent of IoT and supporting technologies make healthcare an industry that is ready for major innovation. While these technologies are currently being deployed for tactical purposes, the opportunity exists to create interoperable platforms to create major disruption.

 

References

[1] Carolyn Y. Johnson, “Why America’s health-care spending is projected to soar over the next decade”, The Washington Post, 2/15/2017, www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/02/15/u-s-health-care-spending-projected-to-soar-to-5-5-trillion-by-2025/

[2] Lynne D. Dunbrack, “IDC Survey: The Internet of Things – Connecting the Health Ecosystem”, April 2017, http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=CA40226015

[3] Jonas Knudsen, “Business Strategy: Internet of Things for Healthcare: European Market Overview”, IDC Health Insights, September 2016, http://www.idc.com/research/view_lof.jsp?containerId=EMEA40530416

[4] Nile Lars, “Connected Medical Devices, Apps: Are They Leading the IoT Revolution – or Vice Versa?”, www.wired.com/insights/2014/06/connected-medical-devices-apps-leading-iot-revolution-vice-versa/

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