Over the last few months, the COVID-19
pandemic has thrown the world into an unprecedented situation. It even gave
birth to new concepts such as social-distancing and prioritized technologies
like cloud, internet of things (IoT) services, and artificial intelligence.
Likewise, IoT and the internet of medical things (IoMT) have witnessed a number
of innovative revolutions to address the coronavirus crisis. These technologies
in healthcare and retail may have a long-lasting impact in the upcoming future.
IoT has predominantly become one of the
frequent expressions across the technological domain nowadays, with the
potential to significantly enhance the way we interact with the contemporary
world. From high-level healthcare devices to common household gadgets, IoT
technology is getting more intelligent and connected to the internet,
facilitating seamless communication between networks and devices.
Why medical connectivity matters?
The coronavirus outbreak has led IoT
healthcare companies to promptly provide solutions for combatting the
increasing requirement for high-quality medical services. Medical connectivity
is the sole extinguisher to the fast-spreading COVID-19 that has taken over the
entire healthcare ecosystem from vaccine developing labs, pharmaceutical
companies, hospitals, and health insurers. Applications such as telemedicine
include remote patient monitoring, and interactive medicine can help in social
distancing with inpatient monitoring that is expected to achieve traction
during this time.
The current advancements in technology, for
any industry, indicates secure communication, enhanced storage and transfer of
massive data, and numerous benefits that prevent industries from backtracking.
Most of these advantages are being capitalized on by the healthcare sector, as
it perhaps has the utmost gain from these rapid progressions.
The growing role of IoT in medical
connectivity
Quarantine tracking
One of the most significant measures to
curb the spread of coronavirus is the effective quarantine of infected or
perceived-to-be-infected people. From connected drone monitoring to thermal
heat scanners, IoT devices are being utilized to collect data and pass on this
information to Governments or healthcare sectors.
There are several wireless communication
and GPS technologies, such as connected drones, cellular positioning systems,
etc. that can be implemented to monitor people at gatherings or even at
offices.
Medical automation and healthcare
connectivity
The COVID-19 pandemic is proving to be a
catalyst for 5G innovation, particularly in healthcare automation and medical
connectivity. The revolution in innovation such as 5G enabled medical robots
can instantly and accurately scan human temperature, deliver drugs, and
disinfect hospitals wards, therefore reducing the exposure of humans to the
virus. These humanoid robots can also overcome the deficiency of personal
protective equipment required for doctors and nurses. Countries like China were
able to make use of 5G-enabled healthcare automation by introducing a 5G+
remote consultation arrangement across its multiple hospitals; where the
medical personal could consult patients as well as interconnect and learn from
various healthcare professionals.
AI-based medical robots and chatbots
As COVID-19 cases spiked all around, the
number of calls to healthcare sectors regarding symptoms queries and precaution
strategies was overwhelming. According to Partner Healthcare, Boston, the
average delay time on their hotline topped almost up to 30 minutes, creating
more panic and unawareness.
To eradicate this dilemma, software
enterprises collaborated with hospitals and healthcare centers to set up
AI-based chatbots on their website and mobile apps. These chatbots were capable
of asking a series of questions to screen visitors as well as provide safety
measures according to the severity of their health.
Also, smart hospitals were set-up in Wuhan,
China, to assist healthcare professionals, these hospitals were the ideal
example of AIoT, a combination of the internet of things and artificial
intelligence. From scanning body temperatures and monitoring heart-rate to
cleaning and disinfecting the premise, these AI-based robots performed
remarkably well for their responsibility.
The growing role of IoT in other sectors
E-learning and online classrooms
Across the world, schools and educational
institutes have been closed for months, and it has forced the institutions to
take the classes online as social distancing standards continue. However,
e-learning with advanced technologies can be a comparatively better alternative
than traditional offline classrooms. In the future, there can also be
device-based augmented reality classrooms, where students get the entire
privilege of being at a school within their own houses.
Essential business automation
One of the most significant concerns during
the pandemic is the availability of groceries, consumer supplies, and retail.
The more autonomous and innovative retail environment with the electronic shelf
label (ESL) technology helps mitigate the hand-operated, in-person workload by
implementing IoT devices to monitor and track commodities on the shelves. The
IoT smart shelves can facilitate an effective shopping experience and improve
safety with social distancing and less human interaction.
IoT technology has enabled more efficient
and innovative services across a wide range of industries ranging from
healthcare to manufacturing. Mobile network operators (MNOs) are in the ideal
setting to facilitate these types of time-critical services due to their
capability to leverage advanced 5G networks systematically and
cost-effectively.
IoT services and technology may be the most
prominent innovation that has been making impressions in the healthcare
industry. It has provided us with many opportunities to innovate, all we need
to do is stay committed to innovation and quality production of this remarkable
connected technology.
