Enterprise technology is increasingly leaning toward artificial intelligence and related digital capabilities. Amid a pandemic-spurred digital acceleration, AI is something that has seen the most dramatic rise. And as we know, healthcare has been the universal focus area since the pandemic’s onset. From startups and SMEs to large corporations, everyone needs healthcare IT solutions more than ever.  

Artificial intelligence, most tech analysts agree, is the No. 1 factor driving the digital healthcare wave. However, this AI dominance is not limited to healthcare. A new breed of artificial intelligence, called Edge AI, has become a potential game-change across industries. AI has promised unprecedented technological leaps with capabilities like more responsive AI assistants, automotive safety systems, intelligent hospital management software, and next-gen robots.  

In a rapidly transforming healthcare landscape, such capabilities can bring tectonic shifts. With the world getting increasingly digital-first, healthcare providers and patients in India are more willing to embrace technology, The Economic Times reports. Already, the tides are changing—toward digital, at a dizzying speed.  

The Rise of Digital Healthcare in India

The healthcare industry started adopting digital technology much before the pandemic. But as all of us have seen, the coronavirus accelerated the adoption of healthcare IT solutions to a pace never seen before. Over the 15 months or so, the healthcare industry has deployed AI, ML, cloud solutions, and mobile apps at an astonishing scale and pace. As trends mature and evolve, healthcare services are getting increasingly digital. Below are some of the most dominant digital trends in the Indian healthcare industry today. 

 Increased popularity of digital consultations  

Telemedicine’s origin dates to long before 2020. But it never really became mainstream, at least in India. And then Covid-19 happened. From the national ‘Janata Curfew’ in 2020 to state-imposed localized lockdowns in 2021, we’ve been forced to stay home. And that’s what made digital healthcare so popular—perhaps out of necessity rather than choice. 

Using digital healthcare solutions, patients have been able to receive medical advice from their doctors. And such virtual consultations have been lifesaving for many patients. Doctors, too, are finding it easier and safer to practice amid a deadly virus outbreak. With the easier availability of healthcare IT solutions, hospitals and physicians have been able to avoid disruptions. Besides, IoT-powered medical devices are now helping care providers monitor patients remotely. 

Improved diagnosis & care spurred by AI

 Next-gen digital capabilities like hospital management software and ML-powered diagnostics have fostered remarkable improvements. For instance, clinical practices are increasingly implementing intelligent AI programs. With accurate data and deeper insights, medical care professionals are better equipped than ever to treat critical illnesses. Also, the availability of radiation-free and noninvasive diagnostic techniques has dramatically enhanced patients’ treatment experiences. 

 AI and ML have played a particularly revolutionary role in customer experience enhancement. Technologies like AI-assisted surgery and image-guided surgery have seen dramatic improvements. Besides, hospitals are using AI tools like chatbots for initial patient screening. In other areas, tools like doctor’s appointment-booking apps have made it easier for patients and physicians to manage consultations.  

More personalized patient care in hospitals

Personalization already has overarching impacts across all major industries. Technologies like AI and ML now enable the healthcare industry to catch up with this global trend. Relying heavily on AI, ML, and healthcare software solutions, medical researchers and care providers have introduced incredibly personalized experiences for patients. From drug discovery to clinical trial and beyond, AI is making the entire healthcare landscape more experience-driven and personalized. 

Medical care providers have access to massive amounts of patient data. Now, hospitals and clinics can collect and store these streams of data to get deeper insights and create better care services and drugs. However, privacy and data protection have long been top concerns in such undertakings. By integrating secure data management tools into hospital management software, care providers are now taking their services to whole new levels. An increasing number of healthcare companies are using ML and advanced analytics to get crucial and unprecedented insights into health records.  

Wrapping up

While India ramps up its digital healthcare infrastructure in the pandemic’s wake, care providers need to chalk out a dynamic strategy. Whether it’s deploying custom-built healthcare IT solutions or automating processes using AI, dynamism needs to be at the heart of everything.  

The Indian HealthTech industry is forecast to reach $5 billion by 2023, per a recent report by the Internet and Mobile Association of India. That means technology will remain the most transformative factor in the healthcare industry. It’s up to healthcare leaders and entrepreneurs how they could benefit from technologies like AI.