‘The Internet of Things,’ digital wearables, telehealth and the cloud will continue to revolutionize healthcare as we know it, Goldman Sachs predicts in a new report. And it all could save a lot of money.
In this first installment of our Summer Digital Disruption series, we look at the big picture of how technology and incentives are now lining up to change the status quo in healthcare.
Open Technology & Open Minds
Modern technology is driving two forces at once: greater access to healthcare and increased cost savings, mostly by slashing redundancy and unnecessary spending, Goldman Sachs reveals in “The Digital Revolution Comes to US Healthcare” report.
Importantly, people are on board too. “What has surprised us through conversations with physicians, major hospital networks, payors, and the start-up community has been the general willingness to explore digital health as a viable component in daily healthcare practice,” the analysts wrote.
Digital Disease Prevention & Management
Heart disease. Diabetes. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD). Better management of these and other chronic conditions will create some of the biggest changes. Telehealth, remote patient monitoring and improved behavior modification, in particular, will alter how chronic disease will be prevented, diagnosed and treated nationwide.
“These disease states also represent the most fertile ground for digital health since data and modification of treatment paradigms have demonstrated improved patient outcomes, lower adverse events, and reduced costs,” the report authors said.
Specific predictions include:
* Technology changes that bridge “the digital and physical worlds to change physician and patient behavior”
* Closer, remote monitoring of high-risk patients
* Total $305 billion savings for the U.S. healthcare system
In addition, innovation opportunities in the digital healthcare market could add up to $32 billion in the near future. Smaller devices will also have a bigger impact. “The advent of mobile and the advancement of sensors effectively allow for the miniaturization of medical equipment that formerly only a centralized institution could afford,” the report said. “In this way, we envision [the Internet of Things] enabling a hospital of the future based almost exclusively in ‘the cloud.'”
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