Keynote Talk: Harnessing Health IOT for Smart Healthcare

Abstract

The healthcare scene is changing radically around the world as innovative digital technologies are being adopted to meet the challenges of burgeoning healthcare costs, maintain quality of care and provide access to healthcare services. Global internet connectivity, wide-spread use of smart phones, social media and existence in an environment of ubiquitous computing and ambient intelligence have empowered the people to participate more actively in the management of their personal health. The advent of Health IOT heralds a paradigm shift with Smart healthcare in which integrated care models adopted to consolidate the fragmented care services will be technologically enhanced to deliver personalised and precision healthcare tailored to the individual. Home healthcare promises to be the new frontier and a potentially disruptive technology innovation. Wearable biosensors, digital health monitoring devices, intelligent home monitoring, digital avatars for behavioural modification and treatment compliance, wellness and healthcare mobile applications, telemedicine, tele-rehabilitation, telepresence robots, social robots, homecare and services networks driven by artificial intelligence and point-of-care diagnostics for personalised healthcare are some of the exciting changes on the horizon if not already in practice. Integration of these technologies into existing healthcare systems and workflows can be challenging. Singapore is well-poised with the Smart Nation programme to harness the value of these health technologies.