According to historians, the wheel was invented around 3500 BC. in Mesopotamia. With axles, pulleys and bearings, the wheel ushered in a new era of innovation, largely due to the fact that frictional resistance was reduced from the entire surface of the object to a point on the curve of the same object. Suddenly, 14-ton rocks could be relocated and eroded, giving rise to the first civilizations.
Today we find ourselves in the middle of a great technological age that is just beginning. Think about it. In just 50 years, technology has evolved from giant machines with mechanical switches and punch cards, through personal computers, the Internet to the convenience and performance of smartphones.
The iPhone has 100,000 times more computing power than the Apollo Guidance Computer, which helped get the first person to the moon. Today, 86% of consumers have a smartphone in their pocket. This means that 6.6 billion people in every region of the world have a smartphone - almost twice as many as in 2016.
A world of connected, digitally equipped consumers
When you travel to Asunción in Paraguay, you can find a local restaurant, see the experience based on 450 partner reviews and then call a car to get you there. If you want to catch the latest episode of The Mandalorian, you can stream it on the way home. All in one mobile device the size of a small wallet.
Consumers around the world are now armed with the incredible power of technology and the ability to respond to industry. The travel and entertainment industries have shifted innovation priorities to provide customers with the digital experience first on mobile.
Retail, banking, shopping and entertainment follow the path. Healthcare, on the other hand, still relies on email, paper, phone calls and websites as part of the primary channels for interacting with patients. This digital weaning can cause patient dissatisfaction, lead to gaps in care and services, and lead to many unnecessary inefficiencies that can increase costs for all parties involved.
But it's not due to lack of testing. Hundreds of thousands of mobile healthcare applications are available in app stores. Many of them are powerful, feature-packed tools that help patients navigate care. Access is not an issue. Most applications are very difficult for the average person to find, learn and use. This resistance hinders the widespread interaction of the digital patient with mobile devices, as in the past it has prevented people from moving large objects and scaling civilization.
Just as the wheel allowed the Mesopotamians to overcome friction, simple artificial intelligence in conversation could cause a rapid reduction in resistance to the patient's digital interaction.
Conversational artificial intelligence will enable digital navigators to become virtual interfaces between people and machines, making smartphones accessible and easy for everyone, regardless of age. , education, race, location or income. The only requirement is the ability to speak and spell.
Conversational artificial intelligence turns smartphone patients into digital workers
Many companies are trying to "communicate" in a way that interacts with customers through chat bots and AI assistants, but it is too early. Yes, Alexa is more than able to add an AAA battery pack to Amazon's shopping cart. But in sectors such as healthcare, where workflow processes are more complex and regulated, most open-ended language (NLP) -based communication tools are currently declining. Digital chat assistants have a great opportunity to learn the repetitive healthcare management workflows that come with things like a doctor's visit, follow-up visit, or ensuring the correct prescription.
Smart digital navigators can significantly reduce friction, running on native smartphone features such as text messaging and web browsers. They can use the phone's built-in maps, camera and digital wallet to support various transactions. The patient does not have to download the application, create an account, choose a password or overcome any other resistance related to the application.
One of the most interesting examples of conversational artificial intelligence in action is the virtual waiting room, where a digital navigator connects the patient before a meeting and manages all drinking and paperwork processes. the patient enters the examination room. The whole process was facilitated by interactive messaging and 90% of patients reported high satisfaction with this experience.
If interactive conversational AI messaging acts as a user interface for these tasks, the phone essentially becomes a medic. And this has many implications for the long-term sustainability of our healthcare system. In the past, there were enough human staff to handle these types of communication and patient support, but nothing more.
The COVID-19 pandemic has turned the demanding health workforce into a personnel crisis. There are countless examples where digital chat navigators can provide the level of patient involvement that healthcare providers so desperately need. And that's what patients want, so add health care.