5G-connected ambulances will save millions of lives according to experts at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. It was one of a number of astonishing claims made throughout a panel discussion which examined how Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies were completely transforming healthcare.
Attendees were told that the emergence of 5G-connected ambulances will save millions of lives because it will be able to access digitized trauma data and performing procedures in transit. In addition to this, industry experts said that within a few decades people will live to the age of 140 and that some hospitals will be completely overhauled into mere casualty rooms as patient self-management of health becomes the normal practice.
These revolutionary and exciting practices will not occur in some futuristic utopia in 3030 - these developments are expected to be advanced and deployed in the next 10-20 years. Cancers are already being detected months than what was previously possible largely due to small wearable health monitoring devices. Computer vision also allows the visually impaired to see. Some of the advancements being made technologically in the medical sector are staggering.
Chief Operating Officer, Albert Bourla, Pfizer Inc. has claimed that the combination of technology and healthcare ensures that advancements in medicine will be accelerate in order to provide treatment to those suffering from an illness in a much quicker, faster and more efficient way.
He said, "Technology and healthcare have long existed in their own metaphorical silos, but now these two worlds are colliding. This collision means more and better medicines are being delivered faster to sick people, while biological sensors have dramatically improved diagnosis. Predictive diagnosis brings preventive measures rather than reactive. Such dramatic transformation in the sector is having a major disruptive effect on healthcare stakeholders and their relationships."
Microsoft CEO, Satya Nadella has highlighted how AI (Artificial Intelligence) will play a prominent role in healthcare as technologies continue to mature and evolve. He said, "Even the mundane - but vital - area of hospital administration is being transformed, with real-time interactive recording of patient outcomes dramatically reducing bureaucracy and costs. Artificial intelligence techniques working with data enable medical scientists to 'stand on the shoulder of giants' as they can instantly access best-case history. This resolves the impossible task of practitioners keeping up with new developments and removes the problem of medical students' knowledge becoming outdated on the day they graduate."
While the new technology may be dazzling, "the focus of healthcare must be on the patient," emphasized Michael F. Neidorff, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Centene Corporation. Care will become increasingly personalized as the particular, often unique, issues of individuals are identified. Doctors will remain essential in detailed diagnosis and care regimes.