1

The Role of Technology in Healthcare

Student Name

Course

Lecturer

Date
 2

The Role of Technology in Healthcare

The use of technology in our modern healthcare industry has become the hub that is

changing how medical professionals interact, diagnose and treat patients in healthcare facilities.

As a result, healthcare sector has experienced many changes since the incorporation of high end

technology that has improved patient care and medical procedures. The use of technology in

healthcare has spread throughout the domains for efficiency, accessibility and ethical issues. In

order to understand the effects of technology on healthcare, an individual needs to do keen

analysis on its impacts on patients and the broader healthcare ecosystem. These effects range

from ethical dilemmas raised by data privacy and the accessibility of medical knowledge. The

wide use of technology in healthcare sector such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning

and information and communication technology (ICT) have enhanced the efficiency of

healthcare operations. The integration of these high end technologies in healthcare holds great

potential in improving operation and efficiency of patient care and decision making.

The use of technology in healthcare sector has changed medical procedures and patient

care by enhancing accuracy and productivity. Through digitalization of medical procedures,

technology has displayed a significant role in the health sector therefore easing the

administration of patient’s data and improving accuracy and accessibility (Henoch et al., 2023).

The healthcare units are classified into hierarchy systems that are used to effective organize the

healthcare information like diagnosis, procedures, ICT, supplies and service which groups

technologies according their functions. The healthcare professionals in the healthcare facilities

also use these technologies effectively to execute medical procedures (Henoch et al., 2023). The

use of technology such as ICT in the healthcare sector provides framework that goes beyond a

mere digitalization by providing robust mechanism that is data driven for individualized patient
 3

care. Moreover, in today’s healthcare facilities, healthcare professionals and patients are

connected everywhere and anytime through communication (Henoch et al., 2023). As a result,

the healthcare professionals and ordinary people can gain access to medical data and research on

anything. In addition, the use of ICT in healthcare facilities has made it easier to use, handle and

share data to improve patient outcome and enhance service delivery. Similarly, the growth of

ICT has led to the creation of opportunities such as e-health that has helped in creation of new

solution. Furthermore, the HTCs and ICTs in healthcare are used to enhance efficiency,

consistency, and accuracy in the healthcare sector.

In healthcare education, technology has been used to enhance creativity and design

thinking among students. The use of artificial intelligence in AI supported learning such as

projects shows how AI can be used to enhance critical and innovative thinking among students

(Adus, Macklin, & Pinto, 2023). These AI projects enable students to clear insights with

healthcare concepts making them gain hand on experience to design solutions that solve world

healthcare challenges. Incorporation of technological models into healthcare education system

helps learner strongly understand critical healthcare concepts and prepares them for future

careers (Huang, 2024). Training learners with artificial intelligence models in their college level

enable learners to get used to AI tools such as treatment algorithms and diagnostic tools therefore

producing professionals that are comfortable to use AI. Huang also stated that prior preparation

of student with these emerging technologies is important as the healthcare industry continues to

increasingly use artificial intelligence to analyze large datasets, predict patients’ outcome and

personalize treatment plans to enhance healthcare service delivery (2024).

The healthcare sector has significantly benefited from the use of artificial intelligence by

improving treatment effectiveness and diagnostic accuracy through the analysis of complex
 4

medical data. In today’s medical facilities, artificial intelligence has stood as a major player in

changing the healthcare sector, therefore bringing developments that impact range of medical

procedures. The remarkable ability of AI to manage huge amount of complex data is important in

enhancing diagnosis precision and transforming the way medical practitioners in healthcare

facilities treat patients (Zhang & Boulos, 2024). For instance, the use of artificial intelligence in

medical imaging is a good example of effectiveness of AI in healthcare sector. Radiologist on the

other hand benefit from artificial intelligence driven tools to carefully examine medical images

in order to find very small deviations that human eye can miss, therefore allowing earlier

detections and diagnosis of health problems. As a result, artificial intelligence has helped

radiographers to speed up diagnostic procedures for patients. Medical domains such as treatment,

surgical, diagnostic and clinical have benefited from the use of artificial intelligence. For

instance, in clinical, AI has been used in illness diagnosis and decision making in the field of

medicine. Therefore, artificial intelligence has changed the phase of medicine by personalizing

healthcare, improving diagnosis, and treatment procedures.

The technology led to the development of powerful tools such as smart computers,

robots, and machine learning in the medical sectors which allow healthcare practitioners to make

better judgement and provide patients with best medical care. The introduction of machine

learning in the healthcare sector has changed the industry by bringing basic transformations that

improved the quality and effectiveness of healthcare systems (Zhang & Boulos 2024). For

instance machine learning in the healthcare analyzes large scale patient’s data helping healthcare

professionals reveal trends and patterns that may not be immediately normal to healthcare. This

critical capacity of machine learning is essential when it comes to early diagnosis as well as risk

determination. Additionally, according to Zhang and Boulos, machine learning has helped in
 5

improving medical results through proper planning of treatments and creating individualized

methods based on certain patient features (2024). The application of machine learning in the

healthcare sector does not only simplify medical procedures but also will help to provide

efficient and accurate patient centered medical treatment. Many healthcare facilities are using the

ballooning technologies to detect medical problems in patients therefore enhancing both

efficiency and accuracy. The advancement of machine learning may lead to a more efficient and

individualized medication for patients if healthcare practitioners cooperate with the rapid

ballooning field. In the healthcare sector, machine learning is an essential development that is

yielding towards a more individualized, faster, and effective medical treatment.

Additionally, the integration of AI Chatbot in the healthcare sector has created an

interactive interface between healthcare professionals and enabled patients. Chatbot in healthcare

sector are used to help to provide fast and most accurate medical information on aging patients as

well as offering mental health support. The integration of these Chatbot in health industry has

enhanced patients’ accessibility to healthcare services and reduced the burden on healthcare

practitioners through automation of routine tasks. AI Chatbot models are programmed and have

the ability of providing quick responses and continuously learn from patients’ interaction which

promotes the healthcare outcome as well as reducing operational inefficiencies (Adus, Macklin,

& Pinto, 2023). The introduction of Chatbots in healthcare systems due to advancement of

technology has improved the service delivery in healthcare industry since patients can access

patient care around the clock especially in rural areas. Moreover, AI Chatbots are useful tools in

healthcare industry since they can enable patients stick to the treatment plans by sending patients

reminders to take medication, guide them, and follow up on post treatment care (Wangsa et al.,

2024). The uses of AI Chatbots in the healthcare system represent an exciting change on how
 6

patients care are accessed since it has improved round-the -clock support, patients’ interactions

and timely service delivery.

On the other hand, even though Technology has shown significant benefits in upgrading

service delivery through the integration of machine learning, artificial intelligence, AI Chatbots

and Information Communication Technology, it has also presented challenges in terms of trust

and transparency. The systems that these technological tools are made are complex making them

difficult for healthcare professional to understand how they make decisions. As a result, there is

need for interdisciplinary cooperation between healthcare sector and Artificial intelligence

developers in order to make healthcare professionals understand how these decisions are made

by Chatbots. Patel et al., (2024) stated that in order to understand the advancing explainable AI

(XAI) in healthcare, there is need for disciplinary conferencing between the developers and the

healthcare professionals. Through joint interdisciplinary conferencing, experts from different

fields such as computer science, ethics, medicine, and law can harmonize and come up with

standard solutions for the challenges affecting AI systems so that they can become more

interpretable (Wangsa et al., 2024). Despite the challenges of trust and transparency of the

decisions, explainable AI (XAI) remains to be an essential tool in healthcare.

The future of artificial intelligence in the healthcare field is promising even though it

faces many challenges. Zhang and Boulos (2024), stated that generative AI in the healthcare

offers many opportunities such as discovery of drugs, improved diagnostic procedures, and

personized medicine. According to Wangsa et al., (2024), generative AI has the ability to analyze

large datasets to reveal information that may not be obvious to human clinicians. These

generative AI models can predict the progress of disease, suggest personized treatment for the

disease, and generate a novel drug compound for the treatment of that particular disease.
 7

However, the efficiency and effectiveness of these generative AI model depends on the quality

and diversity of the data that they are trained upon, thus for them to be free from bias and operate

within ethical limits, they need efforts from both healthcare discipline and technological society.

The use of machine learning, artificial intelligence, AI Chatbots and Information

Communication Technology is an exciting development in dynamic intersection of technology

and healthcare. These developments enhance patient oriented approach by easing medical

procedures, promoting diagnostic precision, and increasing effectiveness of treatment. Moreover,

the ICT in the medical field has stood as a pillar in making communication and data

administration easier. The machine learning and artificial intelligence have played a core role in

providing medical practitioners access to creative analytical resources. The healthcare sector is

rapidly transforming as technology advances and the integration of machine learning, smart

computers, and artificial intelligence has made the sector more individualized, accessible and

effective for patient centered care. The combination of healthcare and technology not only

transforms the way things are done in the healthcare facilities, but also displays dedication to

precision medicine. This fusion of creativity shows a forward thinking move that has changed

positively the healthcare sector.

References

Adus, S., Macklin, J., & Pinto, A. (2023). Exploring patient perspectives on how they can and

should be engaged in the development of artificial intelligence (AI) applications in health

care. BMC Health Services Research, 23(1), 1163.

Henoch, I., Strang, S., Larnebratt, C., & Hermansson, J. (2023). Digital health support–a good

thing, but not for me: experiences of family caregivers and healthcare staff. British

Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 51(1), 150-161.

Huang, H. (2024). Promoting students’ creative and design thinking with generative AI-

supported co-regulated learning: Evidence from digital game development projects in

healthcare courses. Educational Technology & Society, 27(4).

Hurley, M. E., Lang, B. H., Kostick-Quenet, K. M., Smith, J. N., & Blumenthal-Barby, J. (2024).

Patient Consent and The Right to Notice and Explanation of AI Systems Used in Health

Care. The American Journal of Bioethics, 1-13.

Patel, A. U., Gu, Q., Esper, R., Maeser, D., & Maeser, N. (2024). The Crucial Role of

Interdisciplinary Conferences in Advancing Explainable AI in

Healthcare. BioMedInformatics, 4(2), 1363-1383.

Wangsa, K., Karim, S., Gide, E., & Elkhodr, M. (2024). A Systematic Review and

Comprehensive Analysis of Pioneering AI Chatbot Models from Education to

Healthcare: ChatGPT, Bard, Llama, Ernie and Grok. Future Internet, 16(7), 219.

Zhang, P., & Kamel Boulos, M. N. (2023). Generative AI in medicine and healthcare: promises,

opportunities and challenges. Future Internet, 15(9), 286.