Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is becoming increasingly becoming important as of late. From sporty clothing to sporty accessories, and now even health wearables, healthy lifestyles are quickly becoming trendy. Since the last few years of the introduction of wearable devices, they have become increasingly popular in the past few years. Many people use them to track aspects of their health journey. Smartwatches remain one of the most popular wearable devices in the healthcare industry.
As technology advances, healthcare accessories may also progress in their health capabilities and, may be able to create care plans for patients. Patient empowerment will be the ultimate goal in which personal change can be facilitated by healthcare providers. Health wearables could lead to positive behavior changes by offering tailored support on an individual basis, motivational reminders, tracking progress, and contextualized user data using a companion app.
For this reason, wearables are consumer products that are worn usually on the wrist and have the ability to monitor vital signs. The device is also capable of being used in the medical field by monitoring individuals and assisting with diagnosis. From steps taken to physical fitness and heartbeats to sleeping patterns, smartwatches have remained one of the most popular wearable devices in the healthcare industry. Furthermore, wearable health technology helps to empower individuals by assisting in early-on diagnosis, behavior change, and self-monitoring software. However, the greater adoption and engagement with wearable devices will depend on several factors, including support and promotion from providers, increased short-term investment for staff, and barriers to usage.
Wearable health technology has major potential to empower users and benefit healthcare providers and patients. However, this can only be accomplished with support from healthcare professionals and user feedback. One of the greatest challenges, however, may lie in the lack of accessibility. There are plenty of different types of wearable health devices on the market, such as the Apple watch, Move ECG, Fitbit sense, Polar chest strap, Omron platinum, Oura ring, and more. Yet the issue lies in pricing since some of the devices can only be accessed with additional technology from the same company that produced the initial product. The barriers to using wearable devices could have significant ramifications for empowerment, such as for hospitalization, loss of interest, and temporary loss of the wearable device which hinders further adoption. Despite the challenges that will come with the gradual and fraught adoption of wearables into the health sector, all parties will have much to gain in the long run.
Thanks for reading!
- Evonna Chisom
Works Cited
https://www.dogtownmedia.com/10-best-wearable-mhealth-devices-in-2022/
https://www.proclinical.com/blogs/2022-4/top-10-new-medical-technologies-2022