There are few elements, industries, or ideas present in today’s societies that do not incorporate technology as a form of betterment, efficiency, or enhancement. With the near constant necessity of businesses and organizations to keep up with competitors, or just to be at the forefront of emerging ideas, it requires the continuous experimentation, adoption, and implementation of technologically informed services to remain relevant.
The medical community has long been an early experimenter and adoption of new technologies to assist in medical practice and screenings, as well as the plethora of work that is being done on the research side of the industry. Of all the many ways that technology and human need have spurred innovation over the last few decades, there are plenty of examples of those forces colliding to create new and successful ways by which patients can be cared for, medical systems run, and research to be more carefully analyzed.
Technological Advancements in Medical Practice
With the levels of saturation present within any modern facility nowadays, it would be easier to point out ways in which medicine is not informed or supported by technology than to do otherwise. AI based software systems help with everything from tracking and organizing patients, to recording test results, streamlining research data, and creating predictive models for disease prevention methods. Telemedicine— the more recent and steadily growing adoption of distance-based communication for patient-physician connection— has been steadily morphing the ways and means by which physicians connect with patients.
Precision based surgery methods, once thought of in realms of science-fiction, have been made not only realistic, but commonplace because of the integration of so many various technologies in the previous decades. Despite all these things to celebrate there is still more that can be done to close the gap between clinical trials, and clinical practice.
To the uninformed, unfamiliar observer of the medical practice and research community, it may sound strange to hear that, while there is a clear and respected link between the two sectors of informed approach, there remains a need for greater unification between them. So much of medical practice comes down to the training and schooling received during the formative years of a clinician’s early years.
Sadly, much of what will be adopted and carried over into practice can sometimes be outdated; informed but lacking in the edge that accompanies technology and newer, research-based findings. There are a collection of reasons for this such as outdated textbooks, inconclusive studies, dogmatic views medical practice and research community informed more by collective opinions alone rather than the pairing of valuable anecdotal observations with well-vetted research.
The other side of all this is that clinicians are careful to adopt the latest trends or attempt new treatments that are lacking more time or additional research results to codify unsubstantiated claims. Between these two worlds are the administrative and insurance companies’ desires for the direction of medical practice.
The need for more evidence-based medical approaches is not just a necessity to continuing the effective care of patients, but for the unification of research sectors of the medical world with clinical implementation.
What is Evidence-Based Medicine?
Evidence-based medicine can be described as the means by which the treatment for clinical health problems is informed by the deeply nuanced research that seeks to inform medical practice with sound research findings. This approach to medical practice is one that relies on a balanced approach to clinical practice by seeing to it that individual examples of practice are based upon not just years of experience and schooling but objective research.
Evidence based research does much to inform and enhance the science and practice of medicine throughout the diagnosis, treatment, and care of patients. Being that there is so much data from the clinical and research sides of medicine, technology has become an invaluable resource in the analysis, categorization, and documentation of such information.
Those who participate in the experimentation and analysis of evidence based medicine strive to support all levels of healthcare by informing what, when, and how medicine is practiced. Not only does it help practitioners stay informed, but it also directs administrators and policy makers through the presentation of informed data that has the backing of verifiable sources.
Benefits of Evidenced-Based Medical Practice
The use of evidence-based practices in medicine is a sound way to encourage that clinical practices are informed by tools, techniques, and systems that have been vetted out by controlled trials. Not only do these practices ensure that there are sound means by which patients and practitioners engage one another, it creates a unity and effective pool of knowledge that has a better chance of being widely accepted.
The vast variety of ways by which patient care can be distributed means that, especially from a global perspective, there are a myriad of ways to treat various symptoms and diseases. Though there are plenty of approaches to treatment, it is the evidence-based research that ultimately informs and directs the course of medicine and its developments. The following are some ways in which evidence-based medicine is beneficial in practice.
- The greater pool of data that can be provided due to research done means that every member of the medical community can easily provide information to policy makers and insurance companies that are, ultimately, in charge of the overall costs of medical procedures. Clear demonstrations of various efficiencies means that one procedure or technique over another helps to inform clinicians advice in treatment options. Higher success rates in one technique over another means that less time has to be spent on testing and care so that patients and hospitals can save more time and money.
- The need and desire for evidence-based medicines creates more opportunities for researchers and engineers to develop new technologies that steadily increase the effectiveness of certain procedures and drugs. The new technologies are not only more effective and efficient, but they can also lower the cost of previously expensive approaches.
- As with any human endeavor, the curiosity for knowledge means that more people are working on similar problems creates more opportunities for an exchange of information. Increased dialogue serves to quicken the rate at which new, effective means in healthcare.
About the Author
Ryan Ayers is a researcher and consultant within multiple industries including information technology, blockchain and business development. Always up for a challenge, Ayers enjoys working with startups as well as Fortune 500 companies. When not at work, Ayers loves reading science fiction novels and watching the LA Clippers.
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