Despite the shortage of skilled professionals and the slow emergency measures that greeted the onslaught of Covid-19, the new generation of medical and healthcare professionals remain steadfast amidst the emerging hurdles and are looking forward on what digital-powered healthcare has to offer.
This is according to a Future Health Index 2020 report titled, “The age of opportunity: Empowering the next generation to transform healthcare”, which was released by health technology firm Royal Philips that gathered responses from more than 3,000 healthcare professionals under the age of 40 across 15 countries.
The report revealed the positive attitude of younger doctors when it comes to technology backing healthcare services. In the Asia Pacific region alone, a strong 87% of the respondents believe that suitable digital health capabilities can potentially reduce their workload. 77% says that these technologies are able to improve the experience of patients, while 76% sees adopting these technologies can help alleviate work-related stress.
“Younger healthcare professionals today shoulder the responsibility of transforming the future of healthcare, yet many still feel their views are unheard, experience hurdles in non-clinical aspects in practice, and are subject to stress as a result of their tireless dedication to caring for patients,” said Caroline Clarke, market leader for Philips Asean Pacific.
The optimistic outlook for the future of digital healthcare was reinforced by the pandemic situation, since it exposed the gaps that deteriorate medical efficiency. With the potential brought by deploying the right data and technological applications for medicine, a country like the Philippines can increase visibility and efficiency even while coping with increasing patient volumes and medical resource demands, the report said.
Since the country is below World Health Organization-prescribed 10 doctors per 10,000 patients ratio, telehealth and similar forms of contactless consultation services can provide a more convenient and safe means for healthcare providers and their patients, it suggested.
“Covid-19 has revealed the gaps and opportunities for transformative healthcare change. Chief among them is nurturing and providing adequate support, platforms and adoption of digital technologies to empower healthcare professionals to act now for a better healthcare future,” Clarke said.
Since 2016, the Future Health Index research-based platform has been conducted to examine the role of technology when used for the advancement of health systems. Last year’s report tackled the reception towards digital health records (DHRs), telehealth and artificial intelligence.
