In July 2019, the Department of Health & Social Care, NHS England and NHS Improvement updated their digital transformation strategy by creating a new unit, NHSX, to lead the transformation. The intention of the NHSX is to allow healthcare services and providers more freedom in their approach to digital transformation as long as they keep to the national standards currently in place when implementing updates to their IT systems.
When the COVID-19 pandemic reached the UK in January of 2020, a rapid change in approach to the deliverance of healthcare was necessary. With the introduction of national lockdowns, social distancing and stay at home orders, healthcare professionals and patients were unable to follow normal procedures and therefore had to adapt as more and more services had to move online in order to reduce the infection rates. However, the digital transformation of the NHS was already under consideration as the government was focusing on better use of digital equipment throughout our healthcare services. The rise of COVID-19 merely increased the urgency for the implementation of these suggested changes.
Through the use of technology, the NHS has been able to manage elements of the pandemic. For example, the NHS 111 online service provided relief for call handlers by supplying coronavirus advice on a larger, wider scale for people as well as working alongside companies such as Google and Twitter to direct people to the correct advice and counter misinformation. They also introduced text message updates to notify registered track and trace or NHS COVID-19 app users of their test results, updates on the risk of coronavirus in their area and informing them if they’ve been in contact or exposed to someone who has tested positive with the virus.
The response from the NHS in regards to the pandemic highlights how quickly and effectively they can adapt and transform their means of service when it becomes a necessity. In many ways, this demonstrates the abilities technology has when a clear problem is identified and people are given the support to make innovative progress. Over time, more patients should be able to access medical information and advice without needing face-to-face contact and therefore help manage the raised demand on our healthcare professionals and minimise the risk of infection.
The top 5 trends happening within digital healthcare are telemedicine, wearable technologies, healthcare chatbots, AR and VR healthcare UX and electronic health records. As previously mentioned, technology in healthcare has had to progress quickly in response to the global pandemic. Development of user-focused tools has assisted in making care more accessible to all on more adaptable platforms demonstrating how UX is changing for the future of healthcare.
With digital healthcare seeming like the future with it’s growing popularity and demand, patients need reassurance that they are still receiving the same quality of care, if not better.
Medical technologies aim to improve the efficiency of healthcare, enhance the patient experience, and make the doctors’ hard work a little bit easier.
The introduction of these new digital means of receiving healthcare is prime example why my major project idea has merit for success in the real world.
Research Information Sources:
*https://www.england.nhs.uk/about/equality/equality-hub/action-required-to-tackle-health-inequalities-in-latest-phase-of-covid-19-response-and-recovery/*
*https://academic.oup.com/fampra/article/38/6/845/6322430*
*https://www.itu.int/hub/2021/04/how-covid-19-accelerated-digital-healthcare/*
https://uxplanet.org/why-ux-in-healthcare-technology-matters-and-where-its-going-2020-82a2cb09ef55.