| | DECEMBER 20228UTLOOKHealthcare Tech The Future of HealthcareHealthcare is changing. It was changing before the pandemic. Everything changes as it is the nature of things to change in some manner. The questions become what will the change bring? It was not that long ago those doctors made house calls now they are virtual visits. Today's hospitals were known as sanatoriums. Places that you really did not wanted to go to get better. Geriatric medicine and interventional radiology became identified as specialties in the latter half of the twentieth century. The idea of an electronic medical record was a dream being worked and developed in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Telemedicine was talked about for decades with limited use until this past year. So where will healthcare go from here? Before we venture into the future, perhaps we could benefit from a ride done memory lane. A look back to the last twenty years finds advances in vaccines, surgical techniques, the mapping of the human genome, and drug developments for treatments in cardiology, oncology, neurology, rheumatology, Hepatitis C, HIV and more. If the advancements in medicine and healthcare were placed in comparison to the known history of mankind, you would likely see a dramatic upward curve in the advancements that have occurred in the last 100 years. Changes have not only come across in technology, pharmaceuticals, techniques, but in the administration of services.In the last five years, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved an approximate 50 novel drugs each year. Already In the first two months of 2021, the FDA has approved four new novel drugs. It is difficult for the clinician to stay current with all of the new developments in pharmaceuticals alone. Doctors used to have to contend with patients having read the latest Reader's Digest or Good Housekeeping article presenting with a new aliment. By Lynn A. Gibson, VP/Chief Technology Officer, Information Services, CHRISTUS HealthLynn A. GibsonIN MY OPINIONIN MY OPINION
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