Few things shake up the public health sector like a global pandemic, and now that we’re looking towards the recovery phase of the Covid-19 epidemic, many doctors, nurses, hospitals, and even medical teaching programs are rethinking what medical care of the future will look like. Today, we share insights from five medical innovation experts on what hospitals will look like in five years.
Tom Andriola. Vice-Chancellor of Information, Technology, and Data and Chief Data Officer at UC Irvine and UCI Health
Tom Andriola sees the biggest change in hospitals being the actual location of where services take place. With the expansion of telehealth during the pandemic, many medical facilities are exploring the potential of treatment-from-home options. Specifically, technology like remote monitoring, artificial intelligence-driven surveillance, and more sophisticated mobile lab, imaging, and service delivery will mean fewer in-person visits for patients and a greater ability to collaborate with doctors all over the world to determine optimal treatment plans.
Nick Patel, MD. Chief Digital Officer at Prisma Health
Dr. Patel also sees the potential of telehealth, as well as the expansion of tech within the hospital room. Technology that improves patient monitoring, communication, and treatment will more quickly identify emerging health concerns, and make the medical experience a more personalized one for patients.
Albert Chan, MD. Chief of Digital Patient Experience at Sutter Health
Dr. Chan says, “It’s really about creating an enhanced care experience — for the patient and the provider — where the settings are limitless.” This means improved communication with patients and learning to adapt to an ever-improving realm of tech tools.
Daniel Durand, MD. Chief Clinical Officer at LifeBridge Health
Dr. Durand sees AI as a big component of the future of medicine. Collected data like infrared, sound, electrophysiology, pulse-oximeter and facial expression will be fed through advanced AI systems to more quickly diagnose and treat patients. He says, “The most digitally savvy systems will carefully study the way that each patient and family interact with this content in order to glean important information on how to best engage them once they leave the hospital.”
Mark Weisman, MD. Chief Medical Information Officer at Tidal Health System
Dr. Weisman also cites AI as a chief component of future hospitals, but he also mentions adaptability. After facing a global pandemic, hospitals of the future will be better equipped to quickly transition their physical spaces into emergency facilities or infection disease wards. There will also be a greater emphasis on technology both in the way we deliver care and in how patients communicate with loved ones outside the hospital.
