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Wearable Technology in Healthcare: Key Challenges and Solutions
In recent years, wearable health technology has increased, and many contemporary consumer goods, such as fitness trackers and smartwatches, now come equipped with sophisticated medical monitoring systems
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Applied Technology Review | Wednesday, January 31, 2024
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Safely integrating wearable health technology into data processing systems is a must for all devices used in professional settings, and it is connected to security integrations. Teams must plan for the reliable transfer of user data to storage systems and analysis tools manufactured by many vendors for the data acquired by these devices to be helpful.
Fremont, CA: In recent years, wearable health technology has increased, and many contemporary consumer goods, such as fitness trackers and smartwatches, now come equipped with sophisticated medical monitoring systems. The need for wearable health technology is currently higher than ever, ranging from multifunctional biosensors to heart rate and blood pressure monitors.
Like anybody working on new technology, wearable health device developers have various particular and often challenging obstacles to overcome. This is especially crucial for gadgets that monitor and evaluate health issues, as a single error or poorly designed function might seriously injure the user. This article deals with the challenges in health wearable technology:
Accuracy
The biggest obstacle facing health wearable technology is calibration issues, or more precisely, accuracy issues. Constantly tracking health measurements can give users valuable, actionable information. Still, the effectiveness of each wearable device will be impacted by any errors in the hardware and software used to gather the data.
Motion artifacts and signal interference are two limits of even the most sophisticated physiological sensors now on the market, and these characteristics may lead to inaccurate or erroneous results. The only way to solve this problem is to keep funding the creation of better sensor technologies and calibration algorithms.
Security
Security is yet another critical issue. Since the user views the data gathered by wearable health devices as sensitive information, stringent cybersecurity procedures must be established to guard against private information being revealed to outside parties. This is especially crucial when working with cloud-based storage platforms connected to wireless medical equipment.
Security integrators and commercial security system installers should be consulted to develop innovative cybersecurity solutions and implement suitable security policies involving more comprehensive systems, such as access control devices and security cameras, so that medical professionals can use wearable health technology safely. Regular policy updates are necessary to stop new vulnerabilities from emerging over time.
Integration
Safely integrating wearable health technology into data processing systems is a must for all devices used in professional settings, and it is connected to security integrations. Teams must plan for the reliable transfer of user data to storage systems and analysis tools manufactured by many vendors for the data acquired by these devices to be helpful.
Current efforts are being made to define industry-wide standards for safe data gathering and transfer practices. However, institutions wishing to employ wearable health technologies should be ready to make modifications as these guidelines are anticipated to undergo considerable upgrades and alterations as the technology continues to evolve.
Regulation
Specific rules apply to wearable health technology; nevertheless, the extent of these restrictions varies based on the device. For instance, the Office for Civil Rights regulates the data collected by fitness trackers and smartwatches, while the FDA does not typically restrict most other low-risk wellness health products.
In addition, additional regulations will apply to wearable health technology used in a professional environment. In addition to the previously stated rules, HIPAA criteria must be followed by any data held in cloud-based systems. Maintaining compliance while creating new wearable health devices may be extremely difficult for many teams.