In this booming age of technological advancements, it is no surprise that the rise of innovative healthcare technologies has certainly amplified the medical field to its finest—from improved monitoring systems up to tech-based surgeries. Indeed, technology is everywhere, and healthcare is far from being exempted.
Nevertheless, the medical industry cannot afford to accept technological innovations carelessly, as everything in that field must always proceed with caution. But with the little by little advancements that technology has brought to our world, doctors and physicians have gained the advantage of diagnosing and treating patients more effectively and accurately over the years.
Technology in Public Healthcare
With the malevolent pandemic still at large in this era, its existence within the technological age certainly helped global citizens a lot, especially when digital gadgets—even our smartphones—are being utilized to aid the public health response towards COVID-19. To control and prevent the further outbreak of the virus, protocols have been implemented in public places, requiring people to log their visits in every building or area they go to. This is to ensure that the contact tracing will be much easier whenever needed. The use of digital technology for these contact tracing measures, surveillance, and case identification is truly one thing that keeps the pandemic from being worse than it already is.
Pandemic aside, the public health industry is sure to go on the digital route for the future years to come. The existence of mobile phones and the Internet allows patients who are too ill to go to their practitioners personally, to connect with them from the comfort of their homes. With the way our world experiences mayhem after mayhem right now, virtual checkups are indeed one way to guarantee your safety while still accessing urgent medical attention.
Technology in Dentistry
Caring for your pearly whites never and should never get old, what with the technology pushing more and more advancements towards this field in the medical industry. Smart toothbrushes are working their way to hit the mainstream markets, and digitally-made dentures are also turning around the tables for the toothless and edentulism-affected population as it provides a more precise and accurate fit to fill in your teeth without having to wait for a week or two. Technological advancements in the industry also broaden access to dental health care, as teledentistry allows people, even those living in rural areas, to reach dental services through the Internet.
Moreover, technological advancements in orthodontic care have also paved the way for easier treatments for your crooked pearls. Insignia, one of the gifts brought about by technology for the dental industry, is a software that scans. It makes a digital version of your teeth so that it will be easier for you to be given a treatment plan, with custom-made wires and brackets designed just for you. With the comfort and convenience that this software provides, it is so much faster and easier for you to bedazzle your smiles with custom-colored brackets or even an enthralling set of golden braces that will definitely amp up your teeth game in the long run.
Technology in Optometry
With the rise of smartphones and LED television sets that provide us a lot of exposure to their bright and radiation-emitting screens, it is no surprise that a lot more people require optometric care now more than ever. Technology has allowed several great innovations to be embedded in the field of optometry, such as the Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) that allows practitioners to examine patients with glaucoma by using light waves in taking cross-section pictures of their retina and determining their thickness.
Moreover, corneal topography is also one of the innovations brought about by technology in eye care. It allows the practitioner to create a three-dimensional image to map out the surface curvature of a patient’s cornea. With these advancements at hand, it is now much easier to diagnose patients and provide more accurate and effective treatments. The careful and reliable scanning software that aids the practitioners to get their work done more successfully.
Technology may be a blessing or a curse, or both, depending on which perspective you look at it from. They can be used for the good of others or be employed to take advantage of others. Nevertheless, it is undeniable that technology has paved the way for much better healthcare access and treatment. These innovations saved many lives throughout the years in the process. And it is only at its starting point from here. We can look forward to the changes in the future.
