Horizons Spring/Summer 2019

Innovation & Use of Technology Today, healthcare companies are

These options generally are less expensive for patients as they can avoid the cost of an inpatient stay. The advent of telehealth now gives patients the option to speak with a doctor from the comfort of their own homes. By simply communicating through a phone call and video messaging, the patient can speak with a doctor about treatment options. Work-based provider clinics are quickly becoming popular in the United States as well. According to a survey report published by Mercer in 2018, one-third of employers with 5,000+ employees offered on-site healthcare clinics to employees in 2017, while 16% of companies with employees up to 5,000 offered the same services. A decade ago, only 17% of employers with 5,000+ employees and 14% of all other employers offered the same services. Most notably in 2018, Amazon announced its plans to begin providing employees with an employer-based healthcare clinic at its Seattle headquarters. Amazon has even taken it a step further and has entered into a joint venture agreement with Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase & Company to create an independent company to provide less expensive healthcare services for each of the companies’ employees.

finding new ways to incorporate innovative technology into the services they provide to make them more patient focused and cost effective. Two of the new modern technological developments healthcare companies are using to accomplish this are the use of 3-dimensional (3D) printing and extensive data analytics. 3D printing has revolutionized the healthcare industry by producing prosthetic limbs more cost effectively, allowing doctors to create replicas of patient’s internal organs when preparing for operations and has opened up opportunities to provide patients more efficient ways to receive treatments and medications. Healthcare providers have also begun to integrate extensive data analytics into their practices through both descriptive and predictive analytics. Descriptive analytics help doctors use data collected for either an individual patient or a population of people to provide more accurate diagnoses and treatment options. Predictive analytics help doctors recognize future patient ailments, such as chronic diseases before the patient displays symptoms.

20 Healthcare Industry Adapts to Reduce Costs & Provide Quality Care