The Role of Telemedicine Applications in Healthcare
Half of US hospitals already have telemedicine programs, but telemedicine is also interesting for entrepreneurs, private practices, healthcare systems, medical organizations, and even insurance companies. So what is telemedicine and how can you make it work for your business? Find out in this article.
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the telemedicine market landscape drastically. Before the pandemic, only 11% of patients were interested in having online consultations with doctors. During the pandemic, this number spiked at 76%, and now, in the post-COVID era, it has stabilized at around 35%. By 2025, 45% of all patients are expected to be regular users of telemedicine services.
Now, patients express more interest in telemedicine as they’re more used to it after the pandemic. They also trust the technology more and have recognized its convenience.
So, now the role of telemedicine apps in healthcare has become more significant than it was before. It helps to optimize the work of healthcare providers by saving time for both doctors and patients and reducing the wait time for non-urgent matters.
Top 4 telemedicine technologies
- Machine learning
- Artificial intelligence
- Blockchain
- Big data
Telemedicine software is varied: you can make a relatively simple app that connects doctors and patients, or you can create an app that’s integrated with your whole business ecosystem and helps you automate your processes and optimize doctors’ work.
Most telemedicine startups with complex apps use these technologies:
Machine learning
It teaches software to derive insights from huge blocks of data and thus helps doctors make faster and more accurate decisions about their patients’ health.
Artificial intelligence
AI powers chatbots, voice recognition, and other features that can help patients before the doctor steps in. This helps to optimize doctors’ time and provide instant help at all times.
Blockchain
Blockchain technologies help to provide highly secure data transfers and data storage, which is paramount for healthcare apps that store sensitive patient data that hackers are hungry for.
Big data
Big data technologies gather every single detail about a patient’s health history, making it faster for a doctor to dive into the context and help each patient based on their individual needs, previous diseases, allergies, and so on.
All these technologies are rather costly to implement, but they make a big difference in the way your business functions, allowing you to save money in the long run and provide the best service possible.
Value Chain Stage(s):
