Medicine has a reputation of being complex, frustrating, and scary. Once upon a time, this was all true. Everything from requesting medical records to following your doctor’s orders was a stressful, drawn-out process, which made people cringe at the very idea of picking up the phone to schedule an appointment. However, technology makes much of that painful process a faded memory!
Patient Engagement
Many people don’t realize how much the ability to control and monitor things like dietary and exercise plans and progress means to some patients. Independent people who dislike relying on others tend to “rebel” against those who try to help. They often become stubborn and defiant, even when it comes to something as important as their health. Modern technology makes it possible for these “rebellious” types to stay on top of their health condition and progress, with less constant interjection by their physician. So, for those who hate a hovering doctor monitoring every baby step in their new diet or workout regimen, technology offers self-monitoring techniques. With these, patients feel less like they have doctors breathing down their necks all the time, which helps motivate them to continue with their health plans as their physician recommended. Their doctors still get the information they need on each patient’s progress, and the patients have their independence and freedom to make that progress according to their schedules.
Digital trends also make it possible for patients to request more in-home care options and convenient treatment methods. This affords patients the same quality of treatment received by others who prefer the traditional methods of healthcare monitoring, without forcing them to spend the extra time traveling back and forth to doctors and specialists.
Improving Patient Care
One major struggle patients face is accessing medical records. In the past, the process involved a long trail of paperwork, bouncing from one clinic’s information desk to another, and lengthy phone calls. Often, once patients reached the proper department, they learned they must pay a fee to obtain copies of their records, and that they must either come pick up the copy in person, or fill out more paperwork with the proper identification documents enclosed, and wait days or weeks to receive a copy in the mail. With today’s digital advances, there are several options for requesting and receiving patient records without the hassle and, in some cases, without fees.
Online Medical Professionals
This advance was once a controversial subject. Some professionals believed that too many patients would begin replacing traditional medicine with the opinions of “cyber doctors,” thereby jeopardizing their health. As with all digital advancements, however, the idea behind online medical advisors and professionals has been fine-tuned and revised, to become both helpful to patients and reinforce the importance of keeping up with doctor’s appointments and adhering to the treatment plans and medications issued by their physicians.
Accessible Information
One of the most important advances in healthcare technology is the access to information. Medicine journals and encyclopedias have offered medical descriptions and case examples since written text first became accessible to the public. However, until “accessible” became less expensive, many patients still lacked important knowledge about their health and treatment options. Today, the Internet offers a wide range of options to help patients keep up with the latest research, and the best ways to access and utilize the information available. This doesn’t just apply to patients! These advances also make information gathering and critical research simple for medical employees. Many resources exist to keep both patients and medical staff informed and updated, including how-to’s, best-of listicles, medical blogs, to-the-point definitions and descriptions, and step-by-step guides.
For example, Liaison Technologies offers a reliable 5-step guide detailing and explaining the strategic use of technology to improve and help simplify healthcare, both for patients and employees. Medical sites, such as WebMD, also document important information, with reliable sources cited and recommended for further reading. Best of all, information such as this is all free of charge! Now, anyone can access the research they need on any medical subject, without purchasing expensive books or paying outrageous subscription fees.
