One of the most far-reaching trends in the healthcare industry right now is digital health. What is digital health? It is a broad array of technologies including mobile health (mHealth), health information technology (IT), wearable devices, telehealth and telemedicine services, and personalized medicine.
Digitial health holds the promise for radically changing the healthcare landscape as we know it. And it presents a tremendous opportunity for investors.
Multiple technologies, one overriding goal
Although the list of technologies included in the scope of digital health is quite broad, several are tightly interlinked. Mobile health (mHealth) is the delivery of healthcare services via mobile communication devices. It plays right into the concept of telehealth and telemedicine, which involves providing healthcare services remotely through telecommunications technology. And wearable devices fit right into this concept as well.
Health information technology (HIT) also ties in with these technologies. HIT includes electronic health records, personal health records, and e-prescribing — plus any other technology for storing, sharing, and analyzing health information.
Personalized medicine, on the other hand, might seem to be an odd fit with the others. It involves the use of information about an individual’s genetic profile and environment to prevent, diagnose, and treat disease.
However, all of these technologies share one overriding goal. Their purpose is to use technology to improve healthcare, whether it’s through reducing inefficiencies and cost or by increasing access and quality.
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