Top 10 technologies
Ambient intelligence sensors
These technologies consist of sensors, based on specific processing and communication systems, that collect environmental and physiological data by being placed both in and around the surrounding environment. Ambient sensors are typically built with transducers and transceivers to measure and communicate the information collected. Ambient Intelligence (AmI) promises to provide a successful interpretation of the wealth of contextual information obtained from such embedded sensors and adapt the environment to the user’s needs in a transparent and anticipatory manner. In particular, an AmI system is identified by several characteristics: context awareness, personalisation, anticipation, adaptation, ubiquity, and transparency. For example, AmI technology can be used in the health sector to monitor the health status of the elderly or of patients with chronic diseases and to provide assistance to individuals with physical or mental limitations. It can also be used to develop persuasion services to motivate people to lead healthier lifestyles and in rehabilitation settings or, more generally, to improve the well-being of individuals. Ultimately, it can support health professionals in providing innovative communication and monitoring tools.
Phases
prediction prevention diagnosis treatment rehabilitation
Opportunities
- Smart places to improve patients’ well-being
- Environmental data analysis
- Continuous and ubiquitous assistance
Requirements
- Digital literacy
- Interconnectivity
- Data interoperability
Risks
- High-cost technologies not accessible to all
- Privacy issues
- Totally replacing the real experience of patients with mere data
Impacts
- Optimising and improving the efficiency of the remote care
Example of potential fields of application
- Continuous monitoring and detection
- Innovative communication
- Environmental control (temperature, air, hygiene)
Digital clinical research platforms
Digital clinical research platforms, also referred to as Digital clinical trial platforms (DCTs) when specifically applied to clinical trials, are software environments that support a wide range of clinical studies, including trials and observational research. These platforms, hosted locally or on remote (cloud-based) servers, typically adopt a modular architecture and integrate several modes of data collection from various sources. These technologies enable new recruitment strategies and prospective data collection directly from diverse participants through electronic surveys, connected devices/apps, and electronic health records. They allow participants to be monitored and supported remotely and give researchers the opportunity to track study progress, target outreach, obtain study data for analysis and, most importantly, gain deeper insight into daily variability of activity and its wider impact.
Phases
prediction prevention diagnosis treatment rehabilitation
Opportunities
- Faster participants recruitment and reduced operational costs of clinical trials
- More data underpinning medical research
- Global data ensuring representation across patient population
Requirements
- Public policy and standardised protocols
- Data transparency
Risks
- Privacy issues
Impacts
- Accurate, inclusive and real-time research and clinical studies
Example of potential fields of application
- Real-time analysis
- Data collection and management
Digital medicine and therapies/therapeutics
Digital Therapeutics (DTx) are evidence-based therapeutic interventions driven by software to prevent, manage, or treat medical conditions. DTx can support patients in self-managing symptoms and improve their quality of life. This technology uses digital implements like mobile devices, apps, sensors, virtual reality, Internet of Things and other tools to spur behavioural changes and enhance treatment effectiveness. It can be used as a standalone therapy or combined with conventional treatments, including pharmacological approaches, in-person sessions, but also with specific hardware and sensory-mechanical devices. Its effectiveness relies on the collection and processing of digital measurements. Treatments are developed for the prevention and management of a wide variety of diseases and conditions, especially for chronic diseases, neurological disorders, and conditions requiring long-term care, providing continuous and personalised support beyond traditional medicine.
Phases
prediction prevention diagnosis treatment rehabilitation
Opportunities
- Differentiated access paths
- Empowering patient’s autonomy for simple operations
Requirements
- Integrated and interconnected system
- Public policy and standardised protocols
Risks
- Overexposure to health information
- Clinical validation issues
Impacts
- Improved long-term treatment outcomes
- Increased patient involvement in their care
Example of potential fields of application
- Continuous and personalised support
Digital twin/modelling
A Digital Twin is a set of virtual information constructs that mimics the structure, context, and behaviour of a natural, engineered, or social system. It is dynamically updated with data from its physical twin, has a predictive capability, and informs decisions that realise value. Health digital twins (HDTs) are virtual representations of patients, derived from diverse patient data sources, population data, and real-time updates concerning patient and environmental variables. Through meticulous application, HDTs can simulate random deviations in the digital twin to elucidate anticipated behaviours of the physical counterpart, thereby offering revolutionary implications in precision medicine, clinical trial methodologies, and public health initiatives
Phases
prediction prevention diagnosis treatment rehabilitation
Opportunities
- Personalised medicine
- Continuous monitoring
- Relief for the healthcare system
Requirements
- Data collection and data availability
- Creation of predictive models
- Development of decision models
Risks
- Lack of systems allowing for interoperability of data
- Data privacy and non-medical uses
- Overconfidence in fully data-driven clinical decisions
Impacts
- Reshaping industries to increase efficiency and identify issues
- Treatment of patients as virtualised standalone assets
- Improvement in treatment and diagnostics within hospitals and for individual patients
Example of potential fields of application
- Access to data-driven insights regarding operational strategies, capacity, staffing and care models
- Personalised care
- Monitoring
- Development of a unique model for each patient
Extended reality
Extended Reality (XR) refers to a set of experiences that blurs the line between the actual and simulated worlds. The three major subdivisions are virtual, augmented, and mixed reality. 1. Virtual Reality is implemented as a headset-based, fully immersive environment that enables multi-user remote collaboration and can offer rich situational/technical training; 2. Augmented Reality provides engaging digital content overlayed on top of the real world, accessed via headset, glasses or a mobile device, that offers the ability to guide, train, build and connect individually or with others; 3. Mixed Reality represents an enhanced immersive experience that exploits the convergence of physical and digital experience. XR has provided major benefits to the healthcare business, it can be used for teaching social skills to children with autism, assisting patients with post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression, detecting early signs of schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s disease, and improving the lives of patients with brain injuries. Additionally, one of the most common applications of medical software surgery is image-guided surgery
Phases
prediction prevention diagnosis treatment rehabilitation
Opportunities
- Immersive and safe training environments
- Personalised cognitive and physical rehabilitation programmes
Requirements
- Public policy and standardised protocols
- Integration with the system
Risks
- High-cost technologies not accessible to all
- Divergence between virtual and real
Impacts
- Accurate and improved medical training
- Improved rehabilitation pathways
Example of potential fields of application
- Immersive surgical simulation
- Cognitive rehabilitation
Implantable/wearable devices
Implantable devices are active medical devices, fully or partially inserted into the human body for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes, designed to remain in place. Wearable devices, on the other hand, are compact, wireless-enabled electronics integrated into accessories, clothing, or gadgets, allowing real-time health monitoring and preliminary medical diagnosis. The examples of their applications are numerous. Different wearable devices such as skin patches and smart contact lenses are useful for monitoring blood pressure, heart rate, and body temperature. Implantable devices have evolved over the years, starting from external cardiac pacemakers to implantable cardioverter defibrillators. Such devices have neurostimulators and their configuration can be adapted to the patient. With a similar mechanism, deep brain stimulation is being set up that can be used with electrodes inserted into different areas of the brain depending on the type of impairment which is being faced by the patient. Such use can be helpful for correcting neurodegenerative and depressive disorders. These technologies are an essential element of the future healthcare system.
Phases
prediction prevention diagnosis treatment rehabilitation
Opportunities
- Early detection and preliminary diagnosis
- Personalised assistance and monitoring
- Constant access to the system and health data
Requirements
- Digital literacy
- Accurate and certified data analysis models
Risks
- False outcomes
- Distress and addiction due to self-tracking
- Overreliance on technologies without critical assessment
Impacts
- Easier and more accessible interaction between patient and system
Example of potential fields of application
- Brain stimulation
- Continuous monitoring and detection
- Preliminary diagnosis
Portable medical diagnostics
Portable medical diagnostics are advanced, handheld, and compact tools that allow to perform medical diagnostics outside traditional laboratory settings, for both infectious and non-infectious diseases. These products are characterised by their portability, ease of use, and ability to deliver rapid results. Integrating advanced technologies, like molecular diagnostics, imaging capabilities, and digital health platforms, they are revolutionising rapid diagnostics. Some examples can be hand-held ECG devices, blood pressure monitors, digital stethoscopes, portable ultrasound, otoscopes, and vision tests. These technologies are not only cost-effective but also scalable, making them ideal for deployment in remote and underserved areas. The benefits of rapid and portable diagnostics extend beyond faster diagnosis. These technologies enhance disease surveillance, enable timely and targeted treatment, and reduce the misuse of antibiotics, thereby combating antibiotic resistance. They also facilitate better management of disease outbreaks by providing real-time data for public health responses. Furthermore, the integration of digital health technologies, such as (mobile) health applications and electronic health records, with diagnostic devices enhances data collection, monitoring, and patient management, thereby improving healthcare delivery and patient outcomes.
Phases
prediction prevention diagnosis treatment rehabilitation
Opportunities
- Efficient support for emergencies and remote visits
Requirements
- Quality control
- Integration with data and record platforms
Risks
- Limited scope
Impacts
- Faster and more accessible diagnostics
Example of potential fields of application
- Real-time analysis
- Point-of-care rapid testing
Remote care system/telemedicine
Telemedicine concerns the delivery of healthcare services by all healthcare professionals where distance is a critical factor, using information and communication technologies for the exchange of valid information for diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease and injuries, all in the interests of advancing the health of individuals and their communities. Telemedicine is a component of telehealth, a broader application of technologies to distance in which electronic communications and information technologies are used to support healthcare services. Common applications of telehealth include two types of services: 1. clinical services, in which test results are forwarded to another facility for diagnosis, and home monitoring to supplement home visits from professionals; 2. non-clinical services such as continuing professional education, including presentations by specialists to general practitioners. Remote care is also a type of telehealth that enables patient monitoring as well as transfer of patient health data to a health care provider. To capture data, these technologies use a variety of wired or wireless peripheral measurement devices such as blood pressure cuffs, scales, and pulse oximetry, and they are most often used after a hospital discharge or between routine office visits. These innovations have proven to be accessible and cost-effective medical systems and a fundamental basis of the future healthcare system.
Phases
prediction prevention diagnosis treatment rehabilitation
Opportunities
- Access to care from anywhere
- Continuity of care
Requirements
- Stable access and internet infrastructures
- Privacy policies
Risks
- Loss of human interaction in presence
- Alienation
Impacts
- Reduced wait times and pressure on structures
- Cost savings
- Flexible access to the healthcare
Example of potential fields of application
- Video consultation
- Virtual triage systems
- Remote care services
(Remote) Surgical robotics
Remote robotic surgery is a minimally invasive surgical technique in which surgeons operate on patients from a distant location using advanced robotic systems and real-time telecommunication technologies. These systems typically include high-definition three-dimensional visualisation, precision instruments, and haptic feedback. This technology offers numerous advantages: first, it eliminates geographical barriers, making specialised surgical care accessible even in remote or underserved areas; it facilitates rapid intervention in emergency situations; it reduces risk exposure for surgeons, allowing them to operate in a more ergonomic and controlled environment; and it enables complex procedures to be performed with a high degree of precision and control. With these advantages, telesurgery has significant potential to transform the surgical industry, improve outcomes and promote global equity in access to services.
Phases
prediction prevention diagnosis treatment rehabilitation
Opportunities
- Access to specialised surgery regardless of location
- Reduced invasiveness and improved precision
Requirements
- Legal and ethical standards shared across nations
- Surgeon training and technical certification
Risks
- High-cost technologies not accessible to all
Impacts
- Expanded access to high-quality surgical care
Example of potential fields of application
- Remote-controlled robotic surgery
- Real-time support and collaboration
- High-precision, minimally invasive procedures
Service robots (care-bot)
Service robots, also known as care-bots, are designed to assist patients in hospitals, nursing homes, and private residences by providing physical and emotional support, particularly for the elderly, children, and individuals with disabilities. They are networked devices that collect, store or process data from various localities and in the cloud. Care-bots can monitor the health conditions of patients, give medication, manually lift and aid the movements of disabled patients, and provide social companionship. There are different types of care-bots according to their functions and characteristics. There are “social robots” for daily living activities and cognitive assistance, which usually require an AI system, sensory inputs and provide a non-contact assistance. Then, “physical assistance robots” designed to perform physical tasks and support vital functions (e.g. robotic hoists and stretchers for lifting or moving patients, devices to assist in bathing, cleaning, feeding and other functions). There are also “robotic pets” used for therapeutic functions similar to animal-assisted therapy, especially for dementia and/or cognitive impairment.
Phases
prediction prevention diagnosis treatment rehabilitation
Opportunities
- Physical assistance and support for daily tasks
- Support for caregivers
Requirements
- Interoperability
Risks
- High-cost technologies not accessible to all
- Lack of social acceptance
Impacts
- Improved quality of life for dependent individuals
- Reduced workload for caregivers and healthcare professionals
Example of potential fields of application
- Continuous monitoring and detection
- Cognitive stimulation
- Personal assistance