How is technology changing health care?

Technological advances — in medicine and beyond — are improving health care delivery and patient experience while reducing cost and medical errors. 

• Increased virtual care options make care easier to get: The increased adoption of secure, virtual care options makes access to care easier and more flexible, particularly for patients with mobility issues or for people who live in rural and remote areas.  
  • Dive deeper: What’s the difference between seeing a doctor in person and virtually? 
• Medical software is improving health care efficiency: Electronic medical records are just the tip of the iceberg for modern medical software. The integration of artificial intelligence and scribing technology has the potential to reduce physician administrative burden and improve clinical recordkeeping.  
• The integration of robotics improves outcomes and reduces cost: Robot developments have a broad range of applications in medicine, from quickly disinfecting rooms to assisting in surgery. 

How is technology making health care worse?  

Technological advancements are not without their pitfalls, especially when regulations and expectations fail to keep pace.

• Health mis- and dis-information is on the rise: Increased access to information through social media and the Internet has helped empower people to make health decisions for themselves and their loved ones. But today, it is increasingly difficult to distinguish fact from fiction online.  
  • Dive deeper: How do I decide if I can trust the health information I’m seeing? 
• Personal health data is prone to more security and privacy concerns: The increased accessibility of health data using new, connected medical software comes with an increased risk of that data being breached.