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The Japanese are watching their waistlines—and so is their government. A new law now requires citizens between the ages of 40 and 74 to measure their midsections during annual checkups. Diet recommendations and further weight-loss education await those whose girth exceeds established limits.
Whether this regulation is seen as "big brother" medicine or simply a more proactive wellness strategy, it is a sign of things to come: the world's healthcare solutions need to change. Using tools like electronic medical records, wireless computing devices and health support networks, healthcare can be smarter.
In fact, much of smarter healthcare is not focused on the next big breakthrough in medical research. Smarter healthcare solutions start with the individual. Take the Medical Home model, for example. Primary care physicians act as "coaches," leading a team that manages a patient's wellness, preventive and chronic care needs. The doctor spends more time with each person, is available via e-mail and phone for consultation, offers expanded hours and coordinates care across the individual's entire care team.
But what else might we expect from a smarter healthcare system?
Information isn't stranded on islands
Smarter healthcare is interconnected. Like Spain's Servicio Extremeño de Salud (SES), where each location had its own patient records system. The organization took steps to create a global platform, connecting almost 13,000 professionals with a scheduling system that manages nine million outpatient visits a year. Read more (US).
Physicians spend time with patients, not paperwork
Geisinger Health System serves more than two million Pennsylvanians. The enterprise was one of the first healthcare organizations in the US to implement an electronic health record (EHR). This massive storehouse of clinical information, procedure and research enables extensive, diverse medical information to be used as the basis for medical research, treatments and life-saving breakthroughs. Read more (US).
Expertise needs no passport
Smarter healthcare doesn't stop at geographic borders. For example, the island of Tristan da Cunha. It's located more than 1,665 miles west of Cape Town, South Africa, and is accessible only by a week-long boat trip. But that doesn't mean its residents can't have access to high-tech medical care. "Project Tristan" combines medical equipment, satellite communications and remotely supported electronic health record (EHR) technology, allowing medical experts from anywhere in the world to assist island clinicians in their daily practices with medical diagnoses and emergency support. Read more (US).
