22 The Development of Wearable Technology into the Healthcare Field

22.1 Introduction

While the development of wearable tech is relatively new, it is quite a common site in today’s world. Wearables are electronic devices that can be worn, embedded into the user or the user’s clothing, and have the potential to track information and communicate with others, depending on the type of device. Take a second to think if you or anyone you know has an example of these devices. Popular examples include Apple watches, Fitbits, smart bracelets and jewelry, and even smart jackets! While all of these devices have differentiating functions and can be worn in different ways, they all have a common theme; leading civilization to a more connected lifestyle. Looking at this technology in a specified area, the application of wearable tech in the healthcare field, the system that is responsible for providing care to those in medical need, has vastly improved the quality of care that can be provided.

Wearable healthcare devices are specialized wearables that focus on tracking the user’s body levels and vital signs as well as more advanced functions depending on the device. Devices such as Apple watches have incorporated these systems in order to trace the user’s body levels, on top of communication. The application of this technology in the medical field is still relatively new, but provides vast potential to improve this field on a large-scale level. The innovation and application of wearable technology in the healthcare field should be defined as progress as they have provided extensive benefits including constant monitoring, easier access to services, and protection from bodily disorders. Despite barriers for growth of this tech, it is a necessary step for the advancement of medicine. Throughout this chapter, the history of wearables, the application of wearable technology in health care, the pros and cons of these devices, as well as future implementations and challenges associated will all be discussed.

22.2 The History of Wearable Technology

22.2.1 History of Wearable Devices

The history of wearable technology began in 1955 with Sony’s production of its transistor radio which provides a template for portable technology in today’s age. After its debut, wearables held little impact on the market until 1977 when the technology went mainstream. Having a tremendous mass market impact, the calculator wrist watch by Hewlett Packard led to an increase of popularity for watches; this led to more and more companies designing smart watches. As the popularity of wearable devices grew so did the companies creating them, now with approximately 20% of American adults taking advantage of this tech.

“Hewlett Packard Digital Watch Modell 1 1977” by Stahlkocher is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

22.2.2 The Takeoff

The decades following the release of the calculator wrist watch in 1975 provided for tremendous growth and achieved worldwide popularity in 2002. In 2002, the innovation of Bluetooth headphones came into existence and the market never looked back. Between 2006 and 2013, well-known brands such as Apple, Fitbit, Google, and Samsung all took their shot at the market with the introduction of developed smart watches, smart glasses, and other modes of wearable technology. From 2014 to 2020, right after major brands released their wearable tech for the first time, the market has shown exponential growth as its yearly global revenue has increased from less than five billion to upwards of thirty billion. This market is constantly becoming more advanced and continuing to incorporate more specific purposes into the hardware of the devices. These are effects due to the increasing focus of manpower into this endlessly growing field.

“Global Revenue from Smart Wearables and hearables” by Nick Hunn is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

22.3 Why Wearable Tech in Healthcare?

“Wearable tech” by Aneeque Ahmed is licensed under CC BY 4.0

22.3.1 Application into Healthcare

Like discussed earlier, wearable technology was not created with an application to healthcare in mind. However, that application was an incredible unforeseen effect that has renovated the entire field for the better. Unfortunately, the healthcare industry has always experienced a shortage of staff and at this time it is even more difficult to find and replace certified employees after the COVID-19 Pandemic, specifically registered nurses. Furthermore, the percentage of elderly increasing worldwide as well as the regularity of chronic illnesses is progressing at a rapid rate and show no signs of slowing (Lu et al, 2013). With limited persons adequate for providing care and those in need of care continually increasing, a change needs to be made. While the first wearable device applied to healthcare was a pacemaker in 1958, the past few decades have provided for tremendous advancements in this technology. This technology has expanded into watches, bracelets, and armbands that can monitor vital signs, sensors that can be embedded or worn to track specific disorders or bodily levels, and numerous other concepts. The advancement in the usage of wearables in the medical field is what needs to occur in order to help improve the current status of this field.

22.4 Impact of the technology on Healthcare

22.4.1 Overview

As a subsection of telemedicine, the distribution of healthcare over a virtual median, wearable healthcare devices have provided a new connection between patients, users, and the hospitals. While the devices have provided numerous benefits to this field, they are also not perfect. This subsection will provide a deeper understanding of the pros and cons associated with this technology.

22.4.2 Pros of the technology

The benefits of wearable technology in this field are substantial and continue to develop in ways that provide more and more advantages. A main convenience of  this technology is 24/7 monitoring of the user’s body and can easily record clinical data. Examples of this data include blood pressure, glucose levels, heart-rate and oxygen saturation, and height and weight of the user (Lewy 2015). If issues for any of these levels arise and enter the danger zone, the user will be notified immediately of the problem and can then proceed to contact his/her healthcare provider for further instructions. To expand on the communication aspect of wearable technology, the devices provide an easy connection to physician support for medical feedback and decision making in times of distress (Fotiadis et al. 2006). Some wearable devices are geared towards mental illness and utilize the sensors for detecting blood pressure, heartbeat, and temperature to analyze the sensor for disorders such as stress (Lu and Wuo, 2019). An example of this would be Apple watches prompting the user to engage in breathing exercises every time their vitals express unusual or elevated numbers. Wearables have even been developed to monitor specific diseases or vital signs of users. Examples of these include devices that can monitor patients with a history of stroke, physiological damage such as brain and spinal cord injuries, heart disorders, blood disorders, and more. Each device’s programming is specified towards the user’s health and disorder history and can promote recovery, monitor levels, and transmit useful information digitally to healthcare professionals. The endless benefits that wearable technology has truly revolutionized the medical field. However, despite its benefits the devices still have cons associated.

“Wearable Technology “ by Nithinan Tatah is licensed under CC BY 3.0

22.4.3 Cons of technology

Being a relatively new technology, the concept of wearables in healthcare has yet to be fully perfected and holds numerous drawbacks. Like all technology, wearables are subject to hardware malfunctions and errors. While the devices used in healthcare have been approved for patient use, a random malfunction in this technology leaves a human life at risk if it fails to notify the user or healthcare provider of a health complication. Another con of this technology is the cost factor. Unfortunately, diseases and complications in health aren’t limited to just the wealthy, in fact, it is often the case that poor individuals are subject to more health issues. It is unlikely that all of the individuals that need access to wearable health devices will receive access to them anytime soon without a lowered retail price or an increase in the amount that insurance pays for the devices. Furthermore, a negative association for these devices is a high level of security risk. With healthcare being such a confidential field for the patients, it is a high risk level without the proper security implementations. Wearables contain private information and transmit it from the user’s wrist to healthcare providers; at any point hackers and other cyber criminals could attempt to steal this data. All of the cons discussed have developed into future challenges that need to be addressed for large-scale implementation.

22.5 Future Outlook

22.5.1 Benefits of Future Implementation

With a projection of the elderly population to only increase and no showing of certified healthcare providers to grow in the near future, a solution needs to be identified quickly. That solution is wearable technology. With the increase of technology incorporated into healthcare wearables, they have developed into a reliable source for long-term patient monitoring systems (Haghi et al, 2017). Knowing that wearables in healthcare have such profound impacts at a limited level, the application of this tech to a large-scale can develop healthcare into a more successful and efficient field. Having the ability to wirelessly monitor patients currently suffering from diseases, in recovery from disorders, or even just everyday users, provides the hospitals to focus their limited resources on those that absolutely need it. Furthermore, by allowing wearable devices to analyze patient data at the more-time consuming level, it gives physicians more time to focus on diagnosis and detailed care plans. Beyond the benefits for the healthcare providers aspect, it allows users to feel more control of their health. With the technology to provide 24/7 monitoring and exercise goals, users can utilize the tech to achieve their idea of health or make sure they’re completing every part of their care plan if not healthy. The future of healthcare at both the patient level and the care provider level is changed for the better with the implementation of wearable devices.

22.5.2 Future Challenges

“Cost” by Nick Youngson is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

While the concept of wearable technology seems to be the future of healthcare, incorporating it at a mass and ethical level provides for numerous challenges. A huge issue for this technology is the security of patient’s information and healthcare confidentiality between the user and healthcare provider (Lewy 2015). With the device’s main purpose being to record specific information levels from the user’s body and sending it then to the physician to monitor or report any issues, the worry that this data could be hacked or stolen in transit could turn the patient away from the life-monitoring device. Furthermore, the system of the wearable may not be compatible with the healthcare provider’s system and thus be ineffective for both parties. The application of wearable technology onto a larger level requires the development of a model system that can be incorporated into all healthcare organizations. Another challenge for this technology is the cost of the device on both ends. In regards to users, the technology must be produced and marketed at a price that is realistic in order to ensure that it can reach those of all income levels. Moreover, in order to be adopted by the healthcare industry the technology on their side must be at a price that is realistic for its effectiveness or it won’t be purchased because of the hospital’s tight budgets.

Chapter Summary

After being designed in 1955 and gaining traction in the mid 1970s, wearable tech has completely changed the face of technology. Seeing the potential of wearables, it wasn’t long before well known brands such as Apple, Samsung, and many others designed their own versions of this growing technology. Now, wearables vary from watches, smart glasses, body monitors, smart jewelry, and more that have countless purposes of communication to music streaming to gaming to finance to healthcare.

While healthcare wasn’t an immediate application of this growing industry, wearables now have the ability to aid with fitness, disabilities, monitoring vital signs, and can provide a direct line of communication from the user to the physician. On top of these beneficial functions, wearable tech in healthcare can also provide more accurate and constant monitoring of vital signs for those that struggle with diseases that cause fluctuations in their vitals. Additionally, wearables have advanced to the point where they can provide medical advice and recommend seeking a physician when necessary. Despite the numerous benefits these devices provide, they are not perfect and are still at a level where flaws exist.​ The tech is still subject to security risk and when being utilized in healthcare, this an even bigger issue due to patient confidentiality practices. Moreover, the technology is still relatively expensive and cannot reach everyone in need due to the elevated pricing. In regards to future implementation, all cons of the technology discussed above need to be addressed before it can be successful at a bigger scale. However, if the companies behind the innovation of these technologies are successful, the world healthcare system as we know it will be advanced in a way that is beneficial to all patients as well as physicians and other levels of providers.

References

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Fotiadis, D. I., Glaros, C., & Likas, A. (2006). Wearable Medical Devices. Wiley Online Library. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9780471740360.ebs1326.

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Luo, J., & Wu, L. (2021, April 2). Wearable technology applications in Healthcare: A literature review. HIMSS. https://www.himss.org/resources/wearable-technology-applications-healthcare-literature-review.

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