The New Age Patient Profile: What Healthcare Organizations Need to Know About AI

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2020 was a defining year for healthcare across the world. The COVID-19 pandemic ensured that the singular focus for the world population at large was their own health and how they approached it. It also brought to light the vulnerabilities in our current healthcare systems. And the innovations that are currently driving the segment. As a result, there have been many revelations about the differences in the ways that the younger generations are approaching healthcare. And healthcare providers are trying to keep up. In order to cater to the increasingly digital generation, healthcare providers are relying on AI to provide a great experience. 

Here’s what healthcare providers need to know about AI:

Millennials and Healthcare

In a study conducted by Accenture, only 55% of Gen-Z and 67% of millennials reported that they have a primary care provider, compared to 84% of baby boomers who had primary care providers. As a result, younger generations – a whopping 39% – are actively looking at virtual care to bridge the gap. Virtual care might have been non-traditional a few years ago, but it’s on its way to becoming a norm now. As a result, diagnosis is also moving into previously uncharted digital territory. 

Creating the Patient Profile

Apart from the patient’s present complaints, the patient’s medical history and drug history form a significant component of their diagnosis. This is one of the reasons why having a primary carer is important. Simply because they are aware of the patient’s medical history over a period of time. This makes them quite literally in possession of their medical profile. 

To give the most accurate and successful diagnosis, healthcare organizations – especially in the digital space – must look to unite multiple sources. And almost create a 360-degree view of the patient. Healthcare organizations today can harness the power of AI to extract data across multiple sources and make sense of it to deliver a rich patient profile. More than half of the respondents to the Accenture survey cited above, for example, have stated that they use wearable technology or mobile apps to manage their lifestyle and health conditions. 53% of total respondents have also stated that they have used a virtual nurse to monitor their health conditions. And this is independent of their offline consultations. 

Fragmented Data No More

AI can enable healthcare organizations to connect multiple, seemingly disparate sources of information, across different media to create a complete picture of their patient. And it is this complete picture that can enable their doctors and medical professionals to make highly successful diagnoses. 

It is also significant to note that the AI-Powered Patient Profile is not static, but ever-evolving. AI allows medical professionals to track patient behavior and reactions over time. Thus, creating a living profile that evolves with the patient and their lifestyle. 

AI in Healthcare

Artificial intelligence in the field of healthcare services is no longer a ‘nice to have’ but a must-have. In order to cater to the increasingly digital generation, it is imperative that healthcare organizations take advantage of AI This will allow them to power their operations and provide their patients with the best experience possible. 

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