Healthcare providers much like in your own industry, are looking at wearable technology for the future of care 

Around the world, healthcare providers are gradually embracing wearable technology. But there is vast potential waiting to be unlocked. Wearable devices in healthcare have the power to enable a future of accessible, personalised, proactive and resource-efficient care. Here’s what’s in store – and what health businesses need to know.

Enormous potential

Wearables can revolutionise patient care. They offer patients personal freedom by bringing care outside the walls of a hospital. Care providers also benefit from the remote approach because it alleviates time-pressed healthcare professionals. And with continuous health monitoring, care providers can draw more proactive conclusions with information about how our bodies, minds and environments interact during everyday life. 

Moreover, a wearable empowers people to take charge of their care, and helps doctors promote adherence to their medical recommendations during the day. Wearables that are user-friendly and affordable even hold the potential to bring essential health services to developing, rural and isolated communities. Wearable technology is an accessible and proactive approach to care. That’s why the future of wearables shines brightly.

A changing industry

This promising future is driving the acceptance and adoption of wearable monitoring devices. Not only that, but an aging population, a shortage of nursing staff and the need for more personalised care put pressure on healthcare providers to find new solutions. 

Are wearables today suitable? High-effort wearables and complex technology can be a barrier to adoption, so many businesses need wearables that are user-friendly and intuitive. The ease-of-use factor is becoming increasingly important to encourage widespread use and engagement with wearable devices.

Another trend is the concern about privacy. Trust is a crucial factor in the widespread adoption of wearables. And to build trust in wearable technology, health data must be handled with the utmost care. The industry is recognising that patients need to feel confident that their data is secure, that they have control over who has access to it and that they know what data is being collected. 

Barriers for wearables in healthcare

While the conversation around wearables is growing louder, there are several key challenges for businesses or healthcare providers. For starters, stovepipe solutions will cause a lot of problems down the road. Fragmented, isolated solutions that do not integrate well with existing healthcare technologies pose a challenge to the healthcare sector. That is why it is key to consider whether the wearable and backend can be integrated into existing systems, if the collected data can be handled securely and to what extent healthcare providers are in control of the data the wearable collects. 

On top of that, the digital divide. Successfully bridging the divide between communities with access to technology and those without depends on affordable and easy-to-use technologies. Accessible devices means they are financially within reach for large portions of the population. And if the devices are effortless to understand and operate – no matter the level of digital literacy – any individual can seamlessly integrate wearables into their daily lives. With all this in mind, high-effort lifestyle wearables may not be ideal for every situation. Truly accessible wearables in healthcare require little to no user effort while seamlessly delivering all the valuable health insights.

For more information about these topics, don’t miss the video interview about healthcare wearables with the mSafety team, led by João Bocas, a leading expert in digital health and wearables:

https://www.sonynetworkcom.com/news/interview-with-the-msafety-team