Internet Of Medical Things (IoMT) and its impact On the Digital Healthcare Revolution

Factors that are driving this market

•    The increasing penetration of connected devices
•    The growing need for cost reduction in healthcare delivery
•    The need for constant and continuous improvement in healthcare outcomes
•    The evolution of high-speed networking technologies and superior internet connectivity

The types of IoMT devices can be classified depending on the place of deployment.
 

On-body IoT devices

- Fitness wearables: Consumer-grade devices for personal wellness or fitness. E.g., health trackers, and smartwatches. These are generally not regulated by health authority bodies. Anyone can buy these devices to track health and fitness. 

- Clinical on-body IoMT devices: These are used to track health metrics and the data can be shared with healthcare providers. E.g., ambulatory blood pressure monitoring for 24 hours. These are generally certified for use by health authorities.

Community IoMT
Using IoMT devices in a larger geographical area to enable remote healthcare services. E.g., medical kiosks in community centers, and point-of-care devices placed in remote locations for making diagnosis and treatment accessible to patients living in remote areas.

In-Home IoMT

Used when continuous monitoring of the physiological parameters of the patient is needed. It supports long-term care in a patient’s home to prevent hospitalization and allow medication management.
These include remote patient monitoring (RPM) devices and sensors used for chronic disease management. E.g., telehealth services, medication reminder messaging, and dosing information tools.

In-Hospital IoMT

To provide quality patient care, hospitals are well-equipped with the best tools. E.g., From ECG, and MRI, to CT scan machines, Electronic Health Records (EHR), and all types of hospital equipments that collect medical data from patients. 

Smart pills

The latest addition in IoMT devices. The smart pills enable convenient diagnosis and accurate therapy with the help of a smart drug delivery system.

Applications of IoMT:
 

1.    Internet of Bodies
•    External (wearable smart devices)
•    Internal (Implants, artificial organ systems, prosthetics, digital pills)
2.    Smart hospitals
3.    Smart labs
4.    Robotic surgery: Use of automated IoT-powered robotic tools to assist surgeons to perform surgical procedures and increase the surgery success ratio.

How has IoMT disrupted the healthcare ecosystem?
 

Till recently, the mechanism of patient recordings was limited to pen and paper primarily. But with evolving healthcare technology,  the related applications now securely store patient information digitally leading to increased collaboration and accessibility of data, so that authorized healthcare workers can receive a real-time exchange of data for better interpretation and can help physicians take appropriate action in lesser time. IoT in healthcare hence is proving beneficial to both the doctor and patient. 

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• Cost efficiency

One of the biggest benefits of IoT in medical care is reduced cost by automating various admin tasks. Also, with the help of remote monitoring, doctors can reach many patients by optimizing their resources. IoT medical solutions monitor health in real-time reducing the cost of commuting and hospitalization.

• Improved patient experience

Smart medical systems can provide information about patients’ vitals in real-time, empowering doctors to diagnose health issues with precision. The data can be stored in the form of electronic health records (EHR) on cloud platforms, for future reference. This data is shared securely with hospitals, care staff, and other paramedical professionals within a few seconds. As the information gets shared widely, productivity in healthcare is further optimized. 

• Remote health monitoring and telemedicine

Regardless of the location of the patient, and their condition, IoMT makes it possible that the patient's care is accessible via a connected medical device. The sensors in the devices can capture, track, analyze the data, and patients can avail immediate treatment remotely. 
Also, the health apps can collect a large amount of accurate data from a user including heart rate, blood pressure, blood sugar level, oxygen saturation, and sleep patterns. These parameters are important to understand the well-being of any individual.
Remote monitoring of patients with chronic or long-term conditions with the help of telemedicine through wearable devices allows patients to be better connected to the caregiving team. Home-based gadgets can be of great assistance to disabled patients through healthcare mobility solutions.

• Accuracy of data and data-driven decisions

Healthcare organizations generate volumes of vital patient information. Earlier, with pen and paper medical records, the data just stayed in the files, and deriving insights from it was impossible. IoMT provides instant information from silos of data giving health professionals accurate insights into the condition of patients. It expands the accuracy of diagnosis and treatment. When patient vitals are tracked in real-time, easy access to the secure storage of patient data is made available,  and the same data is utilized for more accurate diagnosis and effective treatment; IoMT can support healthcare workers accomplish medical objectives with speed and ease.

Challenges of Implementing IoMT
 

The trend in usage of health related devices and applications is rising but not without pitfalls. The value of the information generated and its storage poses risks to all parties collaborating, patients as well as healthcare professionals. Highlighted below are the most prominent challenges to be addressed before IoMT implementation.

• Interoperability: To secure data sharing across various platforms and devices, interoperability is crucial.  As the health data volume is growing continuously, meeting the level of data compliance needs interoperability to integrate into digital systems. 
• Data security: Data in healthcare devices and their related applications is transferred via the internet and shared across many systems. It can be vulnerable to cyber threats and can attract multiple attacks. Cybersecurity is the most challenging when it comes to IoMT for its vulnerability during the transmission of data.
• Regulatory challenges:  Connected devices need approval from regulatory bodies and need to be compliant with the standards.
• Infrastructure costs: At the beginning, implementing new technology can lead to significant investment in hardware, software, IT infrastructure, and training staff for specialized operations. But once trained and mastered, the process can be seamlessly integrated. But the one-time costs can be heavy if and when a proper study before implementation is not conducted.
• Device mobility: Remote patient monitoring and mobile health devices need to have an uninterrupted internet connection and be continuously functional. In case the device switches off or a problem in the network connection occurs, this disruption can lead to lapsed data, which can then result in misdiagnosis and interpretations. 

These challenges can be addressed when healthcare organizations and their IT partners take the necessary steps to achieve security, and interoperability while being compliant with standards.

The benefits that IoMT brings to the healthcare industry are too big to neglect. Bringing a paradigm shift in traditional health IoMT reduces costs, simplifies treatments, and empowers better collaboration. 

Technology has positively influenced digital disruption in the healthcare sector. Over the next decade as the number of connected devices is bound to increase, IoMT adoption for health services will continue growing and the data generated by IoMT devices can then further be used in research to create more opportunities for new and novel therapies. 

IoMT is intelligent and sophisticated, and when applied to its fullest potential, can optimize every aspect of the healthcare industry. Organizations, therefore, need to strategize their IT priorities to adopt IoMT in their operations.

The next generation of IoMT devices is taking healthcare to the next level. At Decos, we have a competent technical team to build high-quality solutions for organizations while following all the compliance standards. 

To achieve seamless and efficient management of such connected healthcare devices, get in touch with the Decos team.