5 Breakthroughs Shaping the Health Industry in 2024

Gone are the days of dusty medical textbooks and hard-to-read doctor’s notes. In the past decade, technology has transformed healthcare, changing how we diagnose, treat, and prevent illnesses. With a click, swipe, or scan, innovations are making medical care easier and more accessible. 

This blog explores how technology is revolutionising healthcare and helping us stay healthier. Modern technology has made diagnosis and treatment increasingly straightforward, thanks to groundbreaking innovations. 

Exploring Technological Health Advances: 

The latest technological advancements in 2024 have made diagnosis a breeze and even fatal diseases curable. Let us delve into the advancements that are thriving in 2024! 

• Telemedicine:

Teledermatology studies from the 1990s have consistently reported high concordance rates between in-person and teledermatology-derived diagnoses. Other studies regarding satisfaction and no delay to definitive care were also high, and no delay to definitive care was seen with teledermatology. However, dermatologist reimbursement has much to do with the wider use of this technology. 

Similarly, studies have shown good agreement between in-person mental health care diagnosis and treatment plans compared with those elicited using telehealth technologies; high satisfaction rates are also reported amongst parents of children with psychiatric illness. In the meantime, telemedicine equipment, such as teleradiology, telepathology, and telepharmacology, continues to tend towards more.

• MHealth:

Thus, analysts forecast the global mHealth industry to grow at a compound annual growth rate of almost  $87 billion in 2022 and close to $640 billion by 2031. In today’s patient-centred ecosystem, mHealth applications help with patient engagement and quality care, ensuring that medical records and prescriptions are easily available without expanding the risk of misdiagnosis through 24/7 telemedicine visits. 

Features include appointment scheduling, secure payments, prescription alerts, and accurate data management through EHR integrations and HIPAA compliance. Meanwhile, a real-time health tracking facility can be used for precise monitoring, on either side, through patients or caregivers.

• 3-D Printing:

Product and service sales from 3D printing had an estimated global market value of around 12.6 billion U.S. dollars by 2020. The industry has an expected compound annual growth rate of 17% from 2020 to 2023. General Electric holds more 3D printing patents in the United States than any other company. 

3D designs can have both clinical and health research applications. Examples of the Purposes of 3D printing in healthcare include medical devices, dental elements, patient-specific surgical models, and prostheses. Having 3D printers ‘in-house’ in hospitals and other healthcare establishments would enable care to be dispensed more personalised and quicker by eliminating delivery times.

• Smart Bandages:

Some key players of smart bandages include 3M, Medtronic, Smith & Nephew, etc. North America held the maximum share of the market by 43% in 2022. According to Data Bridge Market Research, the smart bandage market will garner a revenue of $1.5 billion in 2022 and $2.9 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 14.1%. The Wound Care Market is set to grow from USD 18.4 billion in 2022 to USD 30.2 billion by 2032, at a CAGR of 5.2%.

• AI in Healthcare:

AI incorporation into health care systems is the next important revolution in human health improvement. It is a fact that, to date, it has become an indispensable trend that has bridged the gap between patients and healthcare professionals. The global healthcare AI market is projected to reach $188 billion by 2030, growing at 37% CAGR from 2022 and reaching $45.2 billion by 2026. Approximately 10% of medical professionals use AI tools such as Med-PaLM2 and ChatGPT. 

In the past, 68% of the COVID-19 cases, AI detected the illness in a study of 25 misdiagnosed patients. Moreover, the AI healthcare market in North America was valued at $6.8 billion in 2022 and is leading globally. Surveys show that 79% of professionals believe AI will significantly improve healthcare. Also, 90% of hospitals will likely use AI for early diagnosis and remote monitoring by 2025. AI chatbots can save $3.6 billion globally.

• Harm Reduction Strategies for Chronic Disease Prevention: 

Technological advancements in the healthcare industry assist people in choosing better for themselves and help them avoid habits. For instance, smoking causes disastrous effects on the human body. It is not only dangerous for the lungs but has a high risk of developing cancers such as lung, pancreatic, brain and skin cancer. Many smokers do not die from lung disease but from major heart diseases. 

To mitigate these risks, doctors often prescribe alternatives like vaping, which is considered 95% safer than smoking. Different vape shops also run campaigns to encourage smokers to switch to safer alternatives. For example, Alectrofag drives campaigns like “Win £1000 with just Sign Up on the website and shop various vaping products to opt for a smoke-free lifestyle!” to persuade smokers to quit smoking and adopt healthier habits. 

Conclusion!

As tech is making its in-roads in the healthcare world, Among all these tech advances, AI stands out as a likely ruler of the future generation. We must be aware of the risks that come with us because depending so much on technology, even in the healthcare industry, may restrict one’s ability to make independent efforts and critical decisions. It is necessary to balance using technology to its best by hiring able and trained professionals so that they can make insightful and learned decisions that do not utterly depend on AI.