How mobile apps are transforming the healthcare industry

Updated on March 21, 2022

Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

Technology’s steady march forward has reinvented every aspect of our lives in ways that were easily unimaginable even a few decades ago. Most of us carry within our pockets devices that would have been nothing less than supercomputers a mere fifty years ago. On the other hand, the average global life expectancy has easily more than doubled in the past two centuries. 

Both the healthcare and IT industries have flourished over the years, growing many folds in a relatively short amount of time. Within the tech world, progress has recently been focused around the software end, with mobile app development being at the forefront. Meanwhile, within the world of healthcare, much progress has been made with the invention and implementation of novel technologies and breakthroughs in natural sciences.  

And although both of these seemingly unrelated worlds have long been interacting and benefiting from each other’s growth, today we stand at an exciting intersection of the two industries that could potentially usher in a new era within the world of healthcare. 

The mobile app market has demonstrated unmatched growth and innovation in recent times. With the Covid-19 pandemic, we’ve come to depend on technology to facilitate our daily lives more than we ever did. What’s more is that the pandemic has had a huge impact on our existing healthcare systems, issuing a desperate need for reforms and innovations. This has created a unique opportunity for the medical industry to draw from the world of tech. The pandemic has accelerated the adoption of mobile-based technologies into the healthcare industry, and if done right, mobile apps hold the potential to transform health care as we know it. 

Let us take a look at some of the many ways healthcare could benefit from mobile apps.

Major benefits of healthcare mobile application

Better consultation and diagnostics 

Being locked into our homes, most of us have had to rely on health apps and other virtual means to access basic medical facilities. In the US alone, the number of health and fitness app users is estimated to rise upto 86.3 million by 2022. Mobile development companies usa, have a ripe opportunity to deliver healthcare apps and services that could serve this growing market. As it stands now, healthcare apps’ presence has already made it much easier for users to get access to medical guidance and diagnosis. Telemedicine apps make it possible for users to consult their doctors online. Remote consultations are made even better when doctors can directly send the necessary prescriptions to the pharmacy. These medicines get delivered to the patient via the pharmacy, making it possible for the user to get diagnosed and receive meds for the same without even having to leave their homes. 

As you would have guessed, telemedicine solves a ton of problems. First, they make medical consultations more convenient for rural and traditionally unreachable areas. Telemedicine apps also make healthcare more accessible to the elderly and the disabled. There’s even a caring app that helps you take care of your loved ones. On top of that, they significantly help with patient monitoring and management.

All things considered, telemedicine apps are a much-needed and welcome boost to our existing medical infrastructure. They help improve our current system’s efficiency and effectiveness and are sure to go mainstream even after the pandemic wears out.

Improved Patient management

Have you ever wondered about the amount of time hospitals and medical institutions waste scheduling appointments, juggling paperwork, directing staff, and managing patient records? Having a custom mobile app tailor-made to address these issues can be a huge leap in efficiency for medical organizations.  

Hospital apps can cut down on operational costs and save valuable time by automating and digitizing trivial aspects of medical management. Such apps can help schedule appointments and roll out appointment reminders to patients, saving time on both ends. Patients profiles can provide one-stop solutions to doctors seeking to access patient histories and medical records. These apps can also help doctors and management teams better coordinate and schedule their workflow. 

Countries like India—those with high population density and underdeveloped healthcare systems—stand to benefit the most from such implementations. This is part of the reason why mobile app development companies India have been offering their services to local and national medical institutions to help build their digital infrastructure. Amidst the pandemic, it is highly desirable to shift as much workload as possible away from medical professionals and over to technology, something healthcare management apps are especially good at. And given how cost-effective and helpful these can be, many more medical institutions are sure to adopt them. 

Wearables to aid with medical data collection

Statista estimates the number of connected health-related wearable devices to cross the one billion mark by 2022. The wearable market is clearly on the rise and so are the health apps that aid the use of these devices. Healthcare apps for wearable devices are considered a rising trend in the app space and will continue to grow within the app market for the coming years. 

With the arrival of fitness-related wearables, it has become easier than ever before for consumers to track and store crucial health data. Needless to say, this data can be extremely valuable for health organizations when it comes to patient assessment. More than that, wearable health apps allow regular consumers to understand their medical condition better and even improve their lifestyle on certain ends to prevent health issues. 

Fitness-oriented smart devices like smartwatches and fitness bands—often by implementing clever app design—can encourage users to exercise regularly and maintain a healthy lifestyle. All things considered, health wearables are an unexpected but welcome addition to our healthcare tools.

Benefits of e-learning within healthcare

Another interesting but often overlooked category of health apps is educational health apps. E-learning has skyrocketed since the lockdown, and every area of education stands to benefit from it, including healthcare. E-learning healthcare apps can help students and medical professionals brush up on old knowledge as well as acquire new skills. These apps are convenient, cheap, and provide a flexible option for anyone who wishes to learn. 

E-learning healthcare apps come especially handy within subjects such as anatomy and physiology. This gets even better with 3D animations and AR & VR implementations. Such apps can also help in highly beneficial areas like virtual surgery training. 

Educational healthcare apps lead to a multitude of exciting possibilities like Virtual classrooms to make education more accessible, webinar platforms to help medical professionals learn and interact better, and medical reference apps to make prescriptions and diagnoses friendlier to patients. Given such a thorough list of uses and benefits, we can rest assured that e-learning is sure to stay and transform the healthcare world.   

Conclusion

There are innumerable benefits to well-engineered mobile apps within the world of healthcare. For the same reason, we’ll continue to see a rise in the number of healthcare-oriented mobile apps in the coming years. 

For businesses hoping to expand their reach within the healthcare sector, or hospitals and organisations planning to have custom mobile apps built for their patients; Goodfirms has cataloged a list of top mobile development companies that could help you develop a successful healthcare app. 

How do you think mobile apps will contribute to reshaping the healthcare industry?

The Editorial Team at Healthcare Business Today is made up of skilled healthcare writers and experts, led by our managing editor, Daniel Casciato, who has over 25 years of experience in healthcare writing. Since 1998, we have produced compelling and informative content for numerous publications, establishing ourselves as a trusted resource for health and wellness information. We offer readers access to fresh health, medicine, science, and technology developments and the latest in patient news, emphasizing how these developments affect our lives.