Apple’s healthcare technology, which is useful for both patients and doctors, is becoming popular among the top ranked hospitals in the U.S.
Apple’s healthcare technology is gaining traction among major U.S. hospitals and is proving handy for doctors to monitor patients remotely and at lower costs, according to Christina Farr of Reuters. Apple’s technology allows the physicians to track chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension.
Apple tech gains in popularity
Fourteen of the hospitals out of the 23 contacted by Reuters nodded in confirmation that they have deployed a pilot program of Apple’s HealthKit service, which acts as a storage unit for patient-generated health information like blood pressure, weight or heart rate.
Out of 17 hospitals that have rolled out the Apple healthcare technology, eight are among the best-ranked hospitals, according to a ranking by the U.S. News & World Report. Google and Samsung also launched similar services, which are gradually reaching hospitals and medical partners. Both companies are also in talks with a few of these hospitals, according to Reuters.
The U.S. healthcare market is $3 trillion, and according to IDC, by 2018, around 70% of healthcare organizations across the world will invest in technologies such as apps, wearables, remote monitoring and virtual care.
Useful for patients and doctors
HealthKit from Apple collects data from sources such as glucose measurement tools, food and exercise tracking apps and Wi-Fi connected scales. The Apple Watch, which is eagerly awaited by fans and the market, will come with features that will send patient records with a consent to the doctors for viewing.
These systems offer facilities to the doctors to examine patients for preliminary signs of trouble and intervene before the problem becomes acute. This could save the patient from getting admitted to hospitals repeatedly, which is now penalized under a new U.S. government guideline.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based tech giant is working in collaboration with the Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans along with the Epic System to launch a pilot program for high-risk patients. The team is trying to control the blood pressure of hundreds of patients facing the issue. Devices are taking blood pressure measurements and other statistics and sending the data to Apple iPhones and tablets.
“If we had more data, like daily weights, we could give the patient a call before they need to be hospitalized,” Chief Clinical Transformation Officer Dr. Richard Milani told Reuters.
