We know that the Internet of Things is a network of interconnected
computing devices that collectively sense and share data over the
Internet. We also know the IoT is transforming numerous aspects of
life, most notably healthcare. But what exactly are we talking about
when we refer to IoT devices? The possibilities are endless, from
wearable fitness trackers and smartwatches to implantable sensors and
home health monitors. These devices can continually sense and
wirelessly share otherwise unobservable health data, offering
unprecedented insights into the patient's status and allowing for more
preventative and personalized care.
It has evolved from simple monitoring tools used initially to simple
device-layer data collection to more complicated tools that are
integrated with hospitals and other elements of the healthcare system.
The earliest IoT devices were simple, single-point data-collection
mechanisms, but today, IoT can provide data in near real time and at
very high resolution for many measures of health.
Integration with healthcare software is essential to unlock the full
potential of IoT devices. Integration allows data captured from
potentially many different IoT devices to be consolidated into a
single system, enabling patient data to be used in care. This improves
the accuracy of real-time data access and processes. Integration can
care and influence how healthcare services are delivered and
experienced to transform the delivery and enable new innovations that
improve health outcomes for everybody.
Early versions of IoT devices in healthcare were low-cost monitoring
devices to track vital signs, often of patients who were convalescing
outside hospital environments. They were largely primitive devices
with simple, sporadic connectivity that produced basic, quantitative
data. As technology has developed, so too have the devices improved.
Now, there are devices that are sophisticated enough to be used
continuously to monitor health parameters and remotely send the data.
These latest developments include miniaturization, improved sensor
accuracy, cloud-based platforms, and health-monitoring wearables.
Today, smart watches, wireless medical devices, implantable sensors,
and other home health devices deliver more detailed and complete
patient status data. Technologies in development stride even further
into the realm of the future biosensors and AI-powered diagnostics
that give IoT medical devices even greater capabilities.
The intense monitoring provided by IoT devices attached to the body is one of the most essential benefits of integrated IoT in health care. People are regularly monitored by IoT devices such as wearables and home health monitors, and their near-continuous readings are transmitted immediately, giving care providers a real-time picture of a patient’s vital signs. This kind of monitoring allows for early detection of problems, such as abnormal heart rhythms or changing blood sugar levels, and provides intervention before something goes seriously wrong. Intensive near-continuous monitoring prevents complications before they begin and could lead to better patient outcomes.
IoT integration enables more efficient processes by eliminating steps from workflows and reducing paperwork. With IoT devices providing automatic data collection, a large portion of the time previously spent on a task requiring inputting information to a spreadsheet could now be replaced by machine-to-machine interactions. This reduces errors in data entry and frees up time for care workers to take on other responsibilities. In addition to reducing errors and manpower, new IoT-based healthcare systems can streamline processes by reducing redundant tasks and realigning staff and resource allocations.
Personalizing patient care is another advantage of the IoT in healthcare. Because the system integrates data collected from IoT devices into patient care administration, healthcare providers can tailor a patient’s care plan to individual needs. For example, based on the information regarding your health metrics, like body fat percentage, pulse rate, or level of stress, collected from wearable devices, your physicians may want to prescribe an exercise or medication regime based on those data from the wearable. Incorporating the IoT may improve patient engagement in healthcare as patients become more involved. Further, research demonstrates that adopting IoT devices increases patient-reported adherence to treatments. Overall, customizing care based on real-time and relevant data can improve satisfaction and health as each patient receives care specifically targeted to their unique needs and conditions.
An important issue in implementing IoT medical devices is related to security and data privacy. Data from IoT medical devices are sensitive and can cause repercussions on the health and life of the haslet. A strength of IoT is the ability to secure communications with a sophisticated private network infrastructure. However, a data privacy and security breach may lead to critical violations of patient trust and potentially can put patients’ lives at risk. The proposed system must satisfy rules and regulations such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which require strong encryption, access controls to detect intrusions, proper threats, and screens. Cyberattacks can infect some IoT devices, and the suggested system must have an efficient protection strategy to prevent them or tackle them if they happen. Data transmitted by IoT devices between each other and healthcare systems must be adequately encrypted and protected by strong security protocols to prevent data breaches and unauthorized access to private or sensitive patient data.
Another huge obstacle is ensuring that IoT devices can effectively integrate with legacy healthcare systems and Electronic Health Records (EHRs). Interoperability, or the ability of two or more devices or systems to communicate, becomes an issue when data flowing from different IoT devices or healthcare systems is not easily shared and communicated. Compatibility issues are part of the interoperability challenge – implementing standards and protocols that allow data to flow consistently across different devices and healthcare systems is an essential step in the integration process. Integration also refers to our ability to ensure devices flow seamlessly, intact, and in an understandable manner into EHRs. These data need to be coded intelligently so that they do not disrupt existing workflows or fiddle with data that is potentially outside of expected ranges.
The IoT’s scalability and operational cost are key considerations, especially if healthcare data devices and data volumes are to be increased in the future. Managing complicated and cost-effective procurement, installment, and maintenance of a growing number of IoT devices is critical. Scaling IoT solutions to increase the coverage of sensor-based and connected data devices and associated data volume will amplify the load on the corresponding infrastructure if not given attention. Striking the right balance between investment and delivery of long-term benefits is crucial for any healthcare organization that aims to scale its IoT skills and solutions. Cost-effective IoT solutions that can scale and flexible architectures that can flex the scope of integrations are essential for a healthcare organization to balance investment, assure the realizable value of the work, and overcome financial and operational challenges that might hamper growth.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) can further revolutionize healthcare alongside IoT devices. Through AI algorithms, these platforms can analyze large amounts of data generated by IoT devices and provide meaningful insights, which can help healthcare providers make better-informed decisions. Predictive analytics empowers AI algorithms to detect hidden trends and patterns in patient data, which can help spot potential health problems at an early stage and devise a tailored treatment plan for each patient. With AI and ML, healthcare providers can enhance the accuracy of diagnostics, optimize the treatment process, and mitigate health risks by offering superior care that caters to each patient’s unique needs more effectively.
One solution would be to use blockchain technology to manage data with IoT-driven healthcare systems, as it would allow developers to create a decentralized, immutable ledger of events that all participants can share. If the data could be secured onto the blockchain, it would ensure that data is secured and unchangeable, providing honest, transparent, and verifiable data sharing, thus ensuring the device's compliance. Blockchain could also enhance the protection of the digital identity of IoT devices. Some of the potential use cases include the management of a pseudonymized version of patient records, a tamper-proof audit trail for health records on the blockchain, and consent management for sharing data. These solutions could counteract many of the data security challenges arising from incorporating IoT devices in healthcare.
With 5G technology, IoT devices are also poised to have higher connectivity and become more responsive. The high-speed transmission and low latency of 5G effectively boost the connectivity of IoT, so healthcare can benefit from more timely, automatic, and precise connectivity between laboratory devices and healthcare systems. Remote but effective monitoring will become even more of real-time teleinnovation-driven connectivity in remote surgical procedures, instant devices, and more robust connected health devices.
For the healthcare industry, looking at the future of healthcare software integration with IoT devices creates a picture of a fully integrated, smarter, and more capable healthcare system than we have to date. With advancing technologies driven by a flurry of recent findings and discoveries related to AI, blockchain, and 5G, the capabilities of IoT devices are expected to vastly improve, enabling them to offer more accurate diagnoses, solid data security, and high connectivity. Patients will be monitored in real-time, treatments will become more personalized, and data will be efficiently managed within healthcare organizations. If some of the challenges of IoT should be overcome and if the new and emerging trends discussed above should develop and flourish, the full potential of IoT implementation in healthcare will be realized, leading to more effective, more secure, and more patient-centered care. From its current state, a new era of connected and intelligent care is still in its infancy. However, the potential it holds for healthcare is tremendous.