How AI and the Internet of Things Will Change Healthcare in the Next Decade

The future is much closer than we think. In a time when machine learning is becoming reality, and when inanimate objects are outperforming humans at everyday tasks, the concept of the futuristic hospital’ is an impending inevitability. Over the next 5, 10, 15 or 20 years, we will see the healthcare sector changing dramatically, with a big shift from human processes to robotics. In everything from diagnosis, monitoring, drug administration and pharmaceuticals to surgical procedures.

Patients in the UK have already trialled the world’s first bionic eye implants, a groundbreaking treatment for blindness created by Professor Paulo Stanga from the School of Biological Science. So what else can we expect in the near future? Here we take a look at some of the new technologies to expect within the next decade or so:

The Future of Healthcare

This infographic shows you a forecast of what you can predict in the next 15-20 years. According to the infographic, some of the biggest advancements that will have an impact on healthcare are 3D printing, Artificial Intelligence, wearable technology and biomedical engineering.

An example of how prolific the technologies will be is the prediction from Frost & Sullivan’s Transformational Health Program that suggests that 90% of U.S hospitals and 60% of hospitals worldwide will have A.I implemented by 2025. That’s less than eight years away.

Artificial Intelligence in Hospitals

It is believed that AI will become an important part of patient care in hospitals and medical centres in just a few short years. According to Forbes Magazine’s Reenita Das (healthcare writer and contributor), the A.I market for healthcare applications will have an astounding Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 42% and will exceed $6 billion by 2021.

The benefits? The application of A.I in healthcare is expected to improve patient outcomes, cut down the cost of treatments and care, save hospitals time and money, and create easier workflows to assist medical staff.

In human terms, this means that hospitals will be able to provide a better quality of care for everyone, reduce errors, enhance the patient experience, and deliver much better advice and support.

As well as robotics being used for treatment, it is predicted that by 2030, computer chatbots could be the ones diagnosing you at the first stage. They could even assist with routine procedures or surgery.

The Impact of the Internet of Things

Not only will machine learning bring a new generation of bots to the healthcare industry, but The Internet of Things (IoT) is going to reshape the medical technology landscape. This will change the way we monitor and analyse patients in hospitals, and will provide everyday people with the ability to view our bodies in a way we’ve never done before.

Wearable tech is said to be the next big thing in healthcare. And for health conscious people, this will be a way to stay on top of our health, preventing illness and disease in the long term.

Billions of connected devices and otherwise dumb’ objects will transform into smart machines over the next decade. Including wearable things such as heart rate monitors, blood pressure monitors and many other things that can help healthcare professionals offer a better quality of care and tailored advice based on the stats of each patient.