Todays society revolves around technology. In numerous ways technology can make our lives significantly easier, and in other ways it can make it more difficult. We have the answer to almost any question at our finger tips with a simple search on our smart phones. This is extremely convenient for the majority of people, but when does technology become too much? A 2018 article https://www.thedrum.com/news/2018/01/14/apple-health-data-used-german-murder-case shows that for the first time, Apple data was used to put certain pieces together in a German murder investigation. The Apple Health app showed that the accused man was climbing stairs during a time frame which would suggest he was dragging and disposing of the victims body. Personally, I think it is amazing that technology is able to help in investigations such as these. On the other hand, I think for an average, innocent person it can be a bit creepy that others can see exactly what you might have been doing at a certain time. Some people might think apps like these are an invasion of privacy, but I think if they are being used to solve investigations or be helpful in other situations, why not?
Another way in which technology can save the day: Telemedicine. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cM4aep7VXb8&feature=youtu.be This video explains that hospital visits have significantly dropped since people are able to use their phones to seek medical advice. Not only does this prevent unnecessary trips to the hospital, but the costs of medical intervention have also dropped. I think it is great that people are able to seek medical information from real professionals without having to leave their homes. The only time I would see this being an issue is if the patient is improperly describing symptoms or problems, and the doctor gives a false diagnosis based on what the patient is describing. This could be an issue because then the doctor might suggest a treatment option that might do more harm than good, because they don’t have the correct diagnosis in the first place to begin suggesting treatment. In fact, this might be one of the reasons telemedicine hasn’t completely taken over. Some people believe that the quality of care/advice isn’t as good via telephone. An article from Fortune http://fortune.com/2018/07/03/whats-holding-up-telemedicine/ shows that patient satisfaction and diagnosis seems to be high and accurate. So, maybe it just takes some more people to experience telemedicine and give it a chance.
While some patients are on the phone consulting their doctors, other patients are wearing technology to monitor their vitals. An interesting article views this trend from different perspectives. https://www.thedrum.com/news/2014/11/12/checking-your-vitals-wearable-technology-changing-way-we-monitor-health The article discusses how some people who live a healthy lifestyle would be willing to share their monitor’s data with their healthcare provider, and some people who live an unhealthier lifestyle might not want their doctors to know they aren’t exercising or being active. So, should people have to share this information with their doctors? What if the people living a healthier lifestyle were given medical discounts towards their treatment, or offered another type of incentive? Well I can’t see the future, but it would be cool to see how many people got off their butts when offered some type of reward!
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