In today’s digital age, the mobile healthcare ecosystem is advancing at amazing speeds. New and future technological trends are giving way to the modernization of medical care. As a result, healthcare application and Health App developers must support this modernization by adopting these new tools to deliver more robust and innovative products.
You’ve probably come across articles discussing the technology trends and advancements of the last few years and wondered why companies feel the need to highlight the top IT trends for their industry each year. Well, it just so happens that with each passing day, technology is being updated at incredible speeds; what’s hot one month is outdated the next. Therefore, the trends of last year are the common point of this year. This phenomenon has given way to technological changes that are constantly occurring in almost all industries, especially in health. Yes, the health sector is undergoing a radical transformation with the arrival of new technologies. In addition to this, and in conjunction with constantly updated technologies, the pandemic has further plunged the industry into a massive transmutation and has turned the industry 360 degrees in months. Doctor visits became video calls, patient records became digital files, and remote sensing became the new monitoring systems. Consequently, we think it’s safe to say that healthcare app development trends are not the same as they once were.
Modern health app developers must stay on top of current and future trends to stay relevant and stay ahead of the competition. These trends set the pace for innovation needs and requirements in mobile healthcare and help establish new ways to better cope with changing demands within the system. For this reason, healthcare app developers need to pay careful attention to these changes in the medical industry technology landscape and know how to use them to make their apps relevant and valuable.
Therefore, we find it crucial to outline the healthcare app development trends and innovations that will have an unmistakable impact on our industry in the second half of 2022 and beyond.
Health App Development Trends
At the end of 2020, the global digital health market was valued at $96.5 trillion , with a projected dramatic increase of 15.1% in the Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) from 2021 to 2028. Clearly, the statistics favor digitization of healthcare and are a testament to the growing need for the sector to become increasingly digital and automated. The reason for this modernization phenomenon is twofold. On the one hand, customers demand it more and more. On the other hand, as stated above, new technological advances are driving the digital viability of the healthcare industry. Additionally, with changing customer requirements brought on by the pandemic, mobile solutions must also embrace technology trends that will allow them to move forward and modernize.
So, without further ado, let’s see what new and upcoming healthcare app development trends we should be on the lookout for in 2022.
1. Blockchain
Regardless of the technological advances that are already disrupting the healthcare industry, the vast majority of contemporary healthcare information systems are fragmented. Although the amount of health data that is created every day is growing exponentially, this information remains isolated and, in most cases, inaccessible from the outside. Not only is this inefficient in terms of health data sharing and research, but it prevents healthcare providers from working with their patients’ comprehensive, real-time health information. Additionally, in 2019, the US spent el 17% on health. That’s roughly $11,000 port persona ,the highest health expenditure among all first world countries. If those numbers aren’t jarring enough, the global healthcare industry is now plagued by myriad complications due to the pandemic. High hospital costs, escalating disease complexity, inefficient practices, overworked doctors, and constant data breaches are some of the challenges we face now. These costly and troubling issues hastened the push for greater efficiency and innovation, and in that quest, blockchain technology is becoming the salvation. As a result, blockchain is slowly becoming one of the most crucial healthcare app development trends for 2022.
If you are new to the blockchain concept , it is a digital ledger that manages and records information on blockchains. Each block contains information about the previous ones, making it almost impossible to change, hack or modify the data within the system. After disrupting countless other industries and being the right hand of FinTech’s for years, blockchain technology is breaking new ground in the mobile health industry. though slowly, Blockchain-powered solutions are being introduced into healthcare systems in a quest to transform healthcare delivery, enforce global patient-centricity, and increase the security, privacy, and interoperability of healthcare-related data.
Blockchain-based health systems, including software, applications, and connected medical devices, have widespread implications for the development of health care applications, medical ecosystems worldwide, and their stakeholders. On the one hand, the promise of blockchain-based solutions for healthcare practices can remove the friction and high costs of existing systems, software, and intermediaries. In this way, blockchain-powered health information exchanges between stakeholders have the potential to unlock the true power of interoperability; It can enable all fragmented systems to seamlessly connect and create collaborative insights that lead to better care delivery and assessment. As a result, collaboration between practices, hospitals, institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and patients happens faster and will no longer be deterred by system fragmentation, incompatibilities, or lack of trust. Thus, in the long term, a nationwide (or global) blockchain-powered mobile network for medical information exchange can drive efficiency, collaboration, interoperability, and ultimately support better health outcomes. pharmaceutical companies and patients happens faster and will no longer be deterred by system fragmentation, incompatibilities or lack of trust. Thus, in the long term, a nationwide (or global) blockchain-powered mobile network for medical information exchange can drive efficiency, collaboration, interoperability, and ultimately support better health outcomes. pharmaceutical companies and patients happens faster and will no longer be deterred by system fragmentation, incompatibilities or lack of trust. Thus, in the long term, a nationwide (or global) blockchain-powered mobile network for medical information exchange can drive efficiency, collaboration, interoperability, and ultimately support better health outcomes.
On the other hand, the incorruptible and decentralized structure of the blockchain makes it an ideal platform for the protection, storage and secure exchange of sensitive patient data. And while blockchain promotes data transparency, it also ensures data privacy, promoting the concealment of patient identities and protecting the confidentiality of medical data. These security features are also valuable for developers to ensure GDPR and HIPAA compliance because they provide secure interfaces for transferring medical data between stakeholders.
Although the implementation of blockchain throughout the mobile healthcare ecosystem has not been significant in recent times, it is slowly becoming a healthcare application development trend in some countries. China recently announced the Beijing Blockchain Innovation Development Action Plan to build a secure, transparent, and compliant healthcare infrastructure for the entire country. China’s blockchain-powered health plan started in 2020 and will be fully implemented by 2022.
We are sure that blockchain technology will soon become commonplace in many mobile health systems. However, it still has its technical, organizational, and economic challenges that governments and institutions must address before it matures into the foundational tool it already is for many other industries.
2. Cloud Computing
Cloud computing is one of the dominant technology trends driving the digital transformation of countless industries in 2022, and healthcare is no different. Studies predict that the size of the healthcare cloud computing market will reach $64.635 billion by the end of 2026, meaning its adoption is already increasing. However, this number does not surprise us because, as experienced developers of healthcare applications, we know that cloud-based solutions are one of the most efficient and cost-effective ways to promote the security, interoperability and availability of medical data. .It is the most efficient and secure way to store electronic medical records (EHR), personal patient information, research documents, and billing documents.
Furthermore, this information is securely stored and easily shared, and is accessed by stakeholders in real time. As a result, clinicians and patients can take advantage of cloud-based applications to stay in tune with treatment processes and real-time health updates, triggering patient engagement that is crucial to the treatment success. In turn, for healthcare institutions, cloud-based applications and services enable instant, global access to EHRs and patient data, insurance plans, billing information, and even data for research or clinical trials for pharmaceutical companies.
The fusion of cloud computing and healthcare applications also enables telemedicine, remote monitoring, and medical device integration. These features and benefits of cloud-based healthcare applications have become essential in the past year, so we expect cloud computing to become a prominent healthcare application development trend for the industry in 2022. and beyond.
3. Integration with Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) devices
El Internet de la Cosmas ( IoT ) took the world Health App by storm several years ago and has since become a necessary part of our Internet-dependent lives. Analysts predicted that by 2025, there will be a total of 41.6 billion connected IoT devices, meaning there will likely be more connected “things” than people. These numbers are a testament to the many benefits that the IoT has brought to industries around the world, and the healthcare sector has been no stranger to the benefits of the IoT. The industry has begun to harness the potential of IoT through the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT ),a connected infrastructure of medical applications, devices, and software used to provide interconnectivity to healthcare practices. This network of interdependent medical elements is becoming a trend in healthcare application development by facilitating frequent sampling of medical data for healthcare or research outside of in-person visits. Experts forecast the IoMT market to be worth $136.8 trillion by the end of 2022. So, we think it’s safe to say that IoMT is one of the top healthcare application development trends we’ll see skyrocket this year.
So yes, the IoMT universe is a fascinating trend for healthcare app developers because the more IoMT is adopted, the more healthcare apps will need to be shipped to connect those devices and store and read healthcare data. Furthermore, the integration of IoMT devices with healthcare applications broadens the scope of interoperability within the entire healthcare ecosystem and facilitates remote communication between stakeholders. Additionally, IoMT-powered healthcare applications can help doctors remotely check their patients’ vital signs, monitor and track their physical activities, blood pressure, and monitor disease progression, to name a few. And because of the wide range of IoMT devices, including fitness trackers, remote patient monitoring devices, clinical-grade wearables, smart pills, hospital devices, and more,
We cannot predict the future, but we can make an educated guess based on the 5,000,000 medical devices that healthcare institutions had included in their practices in 2018. Also, with the growing popularity of IoMT devices and healthcare applications, this number will certainly has grown. Therefore, we are likely to see extensive use of IoMT technology and its integration with different healthcare applications in the coming years.
4. Patient Generated Health Data (PGHD)
The digitization of the modern healthcare system and the resurgence of remote patient monitoring technology has started a regulatory push for better and more secure access to patient data. These regulatory needs have opened up a broader search for more secure and reliable data sources, which has recently brought a new type of health information to the fore: patient-generated health data (PGHD). Easily understood by its name, PGHD is any medical information generated by the patients themselves or their families. This self-generated data revolves around the patient’s medical history, lifestyle, conditions, personal information, and current and previous treatments. It sounds similar to medical data collected by a doctor; however, PGHD originates from the patient, who is completely in charge of deciding how, when, and if they will share it with physicians.
For some time now, healthcare developers have issued apps and other healthcare services that integrate with IoMT or medical devices to allow clinicians to read and collect patient data to produce insights that translate into healthcare pathways. . However, PGHD is becoming a healthcare app development trend, showing that the mobile healthcare ecosystem is recently starting to work backwards. In other words, mobile healthcare tools are beginning to allow patients to view and modify their EHRs., register in patient portals, and take charge of their conditions. These benefits help stakeholders accomplish three things. First of all, it informs doctors about daily self-monitoring of chronic diseases. Second, it holds the patient responsible for the success, or lack thereof, of that self-management. And finally, it notifies the doctor when the patient’s illness needs intervention.
As the adoption rates of IoMT, healthcare applications, and other remote monitoring alternatives grow, we are sure to see the rise of PGHD in the coming years. It is likely to become an innovative solution to promote patient engagement while lowering healthcare costs and depressurizing the entire healthcare system.
5. Telemedicine
Although telemedicine is not exactly an innovative trend of healthcare application development, it is the leading remote health monitoring tool this year. Research shows that el 42% de los adultos in the US stated that they avoided in-person medical care during the pandemic and opted for telemedicine instead. This percentage is a clear indicator that telemedicine services, although famous for a few years, began to skyrocket during the pandemic and will likely continue to do so this year, becoming a recurring trend for healthcare app development in 2022.
Regardless of the pandemic, however, there are other factors behind this year’s telemedicine trend. On the one hand, telemedicine strengthens access to medical services in areas with few or no health care facilities. And since telemedicine works independently of existing health care infrastructure, doctors can provide health care even in the most underdeveloped or understaffed countries. For example, the World Health Organization predicts that, by 2030, ,there will be a global shortage of around 18 million health workers. This shortage will have deadly consequences for patients, health systems and economies around the world. Telemedicine solutions are an effective way to overcome these challenges by making healthcare services easily accessible and affordable, while reducing the workload of doctors and optimizing medical work.
6. virtual (AR / VR)
In 2022, augmented and virtual reality technologies are becoming more and more popular, especially in the field of entertainment. We see them being applied in virtual quest rooms, games, virtual reality theaters, and even concerts. However, VR/AR enabled gadgets and games are not the only use of these technologies. Virtual reality and augmented reality are gaining momentum in various healthcare settings where they already provide high-quality hands-on assistance to physicians and pharmaceutical companies.
In the health sector, doctors, institutions and pharmaceutical companies have ventured into AR / VR technologies to:
Empower clinicians: Medical students, experienced physicians, and surgeons can experience and learn treatment pathways through virtual reality simulations without the risk of making life-threatening mistakes. They can also enable the standardization of medical learning.
Perform robotic surgery: High-precision robots perform surgical procedures while being remotely controlled by a surgeon.
Empower the patient experience: VR/AR technologies can enhance the patient experience by effectively engaging the patient in healthcare with immersive simulations.
Perform emergency treatment: AR maps can be overlaid on top of real ones to help emergency patients find and navigate medical centers, pharmacies, and other facilities.
In addition, in Health App VR / AR technologies can help save operating costs, time, provide more personalized treatments and help doctors better communicate their treatment methodologies to their patients and better interact with them. Also, many healthcare app development companies are preparing to strengthen their digital products with VR/AR technologies. And in doing so, they will help provide improved data analysis, support healthcare delivery and educational material, and ultimately empower healthcare practices around the world.
However, the application of current VR/AR technology in the healthcare context is still at an experimental stage. Furthermore, issues such as limited access to high-speed mobile networks, trained personnel, and lack of infrastructure make it difficult for VR/AR technology to be widely applied. However, the development industry is leading the way, and with the advent of 5G , the development of VR/AR-powered health apps is a soon-to-be reality.
Conclusion
Due to the constant evolution of technology, the healthcare app industry is transforming with each passing year. As a result, mobile healthcare apps are becoming more robust and innovative, and developers are gaining ground in making healthcare apps a necessity for the functioning of the healthcare ecosystem. For this reason, it is crucial for us healthcare developers to stay on top of trends and innovative technologies that drive our quest for innovation.
Some of the healthcare app development trends listed in this article are not too far in the future and are already part of the mobile healthcare ecosystem. Others may be a bit behind in adoption due to challenges and difficulties that we will surely overcome in the years to come. However, they will undoubtedly become the next necessity in mobile healthcare.
