I urge everyone to watch this video, as it explains what medical capabilties we now have (or soon will) for monitoring our vitals signs:
To summarize the video, new wireless technologies on SmartPhones (including iPod Touches) now have the ability to keep tabs on all our vital signs, which include blood pressure, glucose levels, and for pregnant women, fetal heart rates and intensity of contractions. As an aspiring medical student, I find this to be fascinating; to have these technologies either already available or soon to be available, keeping track of a patient's road to recovery will become much easier than it is now (and even now it's still quite good).
At one point in the video, the speaker describes an application that monitors your sleep levels at night, when you are in REM, light, and deep sleep (the most rejuvinating kind). Additionally, another application monitors the caloric intake of food in real-time, as well as caloric expenditure while exercising.
One highlight of the video describes the "new stethoscope", a portable ultrasound device that can much more accurately detect the beating of the heart and the contraction of the lungs and diaphragm; such a device will surely assist in the diagnosis of patients that might have heart arythmia or lung issues.
I feel this is exceptionally good news; future and current doctors will now be able to treat patients more efficiently and carefully than ever before.
1 comment:
After watching that video and looking back on another blog post about technology and medicine, I'm not sure I want more. While it all seems to be state of the art and may improve and expedite the wait in an office or hospital, it goes back to one key element: doctor and patient interaction. It will be nice to be able to monitor someone's heart rate almost 24/7, but what happens when something malfunctions? How many people will actually be able to fix the device? Or, how many hospitals or average people will be able to afford this technology? While it may cut down on human error and give early warning signs of health issues, it also takes away from the human factor. I would like to think that by having a doctor in a room with me or having them read over my test results and vitals, there is a connection that is made. Even though one doctor may see dozens and dozens of patients a day, they are all people. Very few people want to be responsible for another person’s death, especially doctors. I fear that some of this technology may become a scapegoat or legal issue for the medical field.
Post a Comment