Effective fusion of consumer technology and front line medicine needed

Government spending cuts and the high cost of distributed healthcare provision could mean a major shift toward home-based patient care. Lack of resource, increased travel time and an aging population is leading some to consider a more viable alternative. However, limited broadband Internet access in remote areas means that joined up policy changes are needed to ensure an effective solution is achieved.

“Effective fusion of consumer technology and front line medicine”

The current round of cuts are restricting homecare and patients are travelling considerable distances to hospitals and then placing greater demands on limited resources when they arrive. David Ford, a director at Pan Globus, is calling for an " Effective fusion of consumer technology and front line medicine" and is challenging both mobile applications developers and policy makers to turn their thoughts toward the regulated medical device market. He also calls for policy makers to realise the potential for significant healthcare savings if high speed UK Internet access is rolled out beyond solely urban areas.

According to Ford, devices such as Apple's iPhone, iPad and Google's Android devices could be one solution to a new era of healthcare technology that frees up NHS beds and saves money. Patients who currently attend hospitals or GP clinics for regular monitoring of their condition may be able to do so via mobile devices with specialist software and simple hardware attachments. The device could run a series of tests and then submit the data for remote analysis by a trained healthcare professional. The result of that analysis could then determine if a journey to hospital is necessary.

In addition to saving the NHS millions of pounds a year and improving healthcare provision for thousands, Ford believes that this could be a golden opportunity for British software developers. All medical devices require extensive trials and regulatory approval but by starting now, new products should reach the market at the same time that broadband and high-speed wireless Internet access reaches isolated areas of the UK. "This is an opportunity for British companies to lead the world in remote healthcare monitoring and the Government needs to sow the seeds of success", says Ford.

Ford, who also holds the position of Executive Director, Healthcare and Testing Services at BSI Group says, "The UK would rapidly gain the benefits of a delivery system that is not clogged up with healthy people seeking reassurance or by those conditions that could be more effectively managed by a local GP. The savings could be enormous and the NHS is the best system in the world to effectively prove this model."

"I like the idea that we can be positive about the future uses of commonly available technology within Medicine, and encourage the safe use of both devices and applications across a variety of platforms to support and enhance our effective delivery of a complex and modern healthcare system," he continued.