IoT known as Internet of things refers to the devices or objects that are connected to the web and capable of exchanging and collecting data. It connects electronic devices to a public or private cloud to capture or monitor data and enables them to automatically trigger certain events.

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In healthcare, IoT plays a vital role in maintaining thousands of patients’ data computerized and helps them to capture their data anytime they want. To keep tabs on the location of medical devices, patients, and personnel, many hospitals uses Internet of things.

With the advancement in technology, nowadays some hospitals implement «smart beds» that can detect when they are occupied and when a patient is trying to left. It can easily adjustable and ensures proper support & pressure to the patient without the need for nurses. In healthcare, this smart technology proves to be an asset with home medication dispensers to automatically upload data to the cloud.

 

By now the Internet, and by extension the Internet of Things (IoT), is not an uncommon part of our daily lives. Everyday items such as TVs, security systems and fitness accessories or wearable are being connected to the Internet in ways previously unimaginable. However, increasingly the possibilities of the IoT extend beyond mere convenience and could become vital to our health.

Unlike our households, phones and businesses, the healthcare industry has been weary of embracing some aspects of the Internet and connectivity into practice. But the emergence of the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) shows that this could be changing. It involves a connection of medical and other healthcare devices to the Internet, increasing the capacity for storing and analyzing of personal and public data as well as more direct and rapid responses to medical conditions or emergencies.

Manufacturers are eager to lay the bricks and help pave the road to better, more personalized healthcare through integration of connected devices in the new Internet of Medical Things.

 

The usefulness of the Internet of the Things in our lives is obvious if we just think of how many Web-connected devices we use every day, and not just mobiles or computers: cars, alarms, television sets and now even medical devices draw upon connectivity. All of these are products that seek to augment levels of efficiency and automation to make our daily routines easier.

 

Of course then, the success of this move requires a buy-in by or a culture change in the healthcare industry towards modern end-to-end medical solutions. The potential changes brought by a smoothly running IoMT would mean a significantly cheaper healthcare industry for both patients and professionals, which at present is an expensive and profiting industry. It is estimated that the most savings could be in chronic disease management. Furthermore, it would mean better and more responsive healthcare. Patients’ vitals such as temperature, heart rates and glucose levels can be remotely monitored, meaning less time spent at the doctor and more immediate response times when something goes awry. Moreover, data on the changes to these vitals can be stored in a way for doctors to review, providing a clearer picture of a person’s condition.

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In this regard Medicine is one of the fields that will be most heavily impacted by the IoT, an industry in which connected objects and pilot projects featuring wireless devices are more and more frequent. With the aid of connected objects the work of qualified medical personnel can be rendered much more immediate and precise, in addition to facilitating the management of hospitals and improving patients’ well-being. The intrinsic features of connected objects, like work in real time and tracking via Wi-Fi connections, make success possible when the Internet of Things is applied to Medicine.

Devices that make use of the IoT focus on achieving two objectives: firstly, the monitoring of patients and control over their surroundings; secondly, the creation of follow-up systems for after the patient’s release from the medical facility.

As the world population is aging and chronic diseases are on the rise, the healthcare industry is rapidly delivering high-tech solutions. The proliferation of advanced medical electronic devices and wearable electronics is greatly improving patient outcomes and reducing healthcare costs. Connected patient modeling will be a critical factor in the continuing success of this field. The exponentially growing demand for connected medical devices is expected to reach 20 billion by 2020.

 

Successful medical devices and pharmaceutical companies are using engineering simulation and connected patient modeling to develop systems that ensure high reliability, provide data privacy and speed regulatory compliance. To make a real impact on healthcare, connected medical devices should capture and interpret relevant and reliable parameters without compromising patient safety and comfort, and deliver insights to physicians with full integrity, readability and security.

Powered by IoMТ technologies such as telemedicine, emerging delivery alternatives give patients access to healthcare on their terms and their schedules. In many cases, they enable people to bypass trips to doctors and hospitals entirely. And, because most of these options employ recurring revenue payments, patients view them as a more affordable choice to traditional medical providers. For example, virtual doctors - with no travel involved and low fees, video-based online medical services are growing in popularity. Instead of using a traditional fee-for-service cost structure, online doctors typically use consumption-based pricing.

 

 

Continuous patient monitoring

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In a hospital’s day-to-day operations IoMT facilitates smart monitoring represent a major advance for the profession, as connected devices make it possible to track patients’ situations, in detail and in real time.

At the practical level, for example, the use of smart beds allows medical staff to determine whether a bed is currently occupied and when a patient gets out of it. These beds also adjust automatically to provide the pressure and support that the patient needs, without the need for nurses to perform manual actions. On site at hospitals, the Internet of Things also makes it possible to control the temperatures of different areas, and to document the locations of medical equipment in a totally centralized way.

 

Treatment does not end with one’s discharge from the hospital

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All these forms of care would be incomplete if patients did not receive attention after leaving their medical facilities, especially when they have chronic conditions. How can one ensure that patients continue to take their medications? On the market there are now connected bottles of pills that send information on the amount of medicine that a person is taking.

For when patients get back home, wearable are highly recommended devices. Tracking from home makes it possible to prevent diseases, and alerts patients’ doctors in the event of arrhythmias or the first symptoms of cardiac problems.

 

Having reached this point, the Medicine of tomorrow is inconceivable without the Internet and new technologies. The trends make it clear that we are on our way towards a society whose devices will be so easy to use that they soon will become part of patients’ day-to-day lives, enhancing their quality of life.

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The Internet of Things in the medical device industry is increasingly being recognized by analysts as one of the technological eras where health, wellness and safety of billions of people of all ages can be improved having a positive impact in the world.

Remote monitoring of patients leads to more effective and timely treatment, leading to better management of health and wellness. In addition, patients are empowered by getting greater visibility into their actual health conditions, enabling them to play an active role in controlling and influencing their treatment.

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Some examples of Internet of Things medical devices by category are:

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• Safety Monitors

  • Fall detection devices

• Vital Signs Monitors

  • Weight measurement devices

  • Heart rate measurement devices

  • Blood pressure medical devices

• Activity Monitors

  • Walk Time devices

  • Calories spend devices

  • Sleeping measurement devices

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What the Internet of Things is accomplishing in the medical device industry is to lower the cost of care, improve patient outcome and improve quality of life connecting doctors, hospitals, medical devices, patients and family members.

 

The benefits to introducing IoMT are vast, and named below:

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• Objective reporting: Because the devices can record and report on actual activity at the level of the nervous system, we no longer have to rely solely on subjective patient reports of “how they are feeling”; instead, we have an objective evaluation of the disease progression and patient therapy efficacy as reported by the devices,

• Remote monitoring: Increased patient accountability as the healthcare provider will have a “report card” so to speak of actual patient therapy compliance instead of relying on accuracy of patient summary,

• Local activity recording: Device recording capabilities allow for the collection data that we’ve never previously been able to access. This data will vastly improve our understanding of the mechanism of action of these chronic diseases. And if we understand the disease better, we will undoubtedly enhance our approach on disease prevention and therapy,

• Automation: The automation of device and therapy records decreases human error or fraudulent reporting within hospitals and sub-acute care facilities,

• Precision medicine: the delivery of targeted stimulation that is optimized for that individual facilitates improved therapy with decreased undesired side effects. When you take a pill, for the most part, that pill is metabolized in some fashion and then distributed systemically throughout your body regardless of its intended target. While much there are many advances to decrease these drug-related side effects, the level of precision we can achieve with devices that can steer stimulation to a specific target is of a much higher degree,

• Adaptability: Because our systems are built on a feedback loop, the system iterates on that feedback and adjusts for improved patient outcomes.   

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