I’ve often heard entrepreneurs call healthcare one of the final frontiers to really benefit from the advancement of technology. I believe this is true, in many ways. (Although, it’s ironic to consider the way healthcare has implemented advanced robotics in medicine along with the latest high tech medical devices, while being so far behind on relatively basic systems, like electronic documentation and revenue cycle management.)
But healthcare is poised to enter a new phase when it comes to technology. The bulk of that revolution isn’t likely to come from major industry players, but instead from entrepreneurs focused on what many will consider obvious issues. Of course, they only ever become obvious after an entrepreneur has solved the problem.
However, I still think most health startup entrepreneurs are going to find it rough sledding if they are working on an application for the traditional medical establishment. Instead, I expect that the most successful health startups will start with something focused on patients. With widespread patient adoption, the healthcare establishment will see the success, and hop on board.
I also believe that mobile technology is going to be the biggest catalyst to these innovations. We can even look to Google Glass as an extension of this catalyst. Whether you like the Google Glass form or not, the point is more about ubiquitous, “always on” computing as an integrated part of your life. That’s what we have available as a smart phone in our pocket as well. These other non-healthcare tech innovations provide such a tremendous opportunity for entrepreneurial people to improve healthcare.
Which areas of healthcare do you see as ripe for innovation? Will mobile usage be the catalyst for innovation in healthcare, or will it be something else?
Follow John Lynn of Healthcare Scene and on Twitter at @ehrandhit.