When Minutes Matter: How Technology Can Connect Patients To The Care They Need When They Need It

In 2020, the youngest members of the baby boomer generation will be 56 years old. As this large generation ages, their chronic conditions, emergency department (ED) visits and hospital admissions will follow suit. One study from 2014 found that 32% of people with five or more chronic conditions visited the ED at least once in a year, 24% had at least one hospital admission per year and, on average, had a whopping 51 prescriptions filled or refilled in that time.

Sorting through patients’ multiple chronic conditions, medical histories and prescriptions can be time-consuming for physicians, nurses and other providers. Unfortunately, time is not a luxury that providers often have. Recent technological advances, however, are shortening the time-to-treatment response for these patients and, in some cases, helping providers predict a potential adverse health event before the patient feels any symptoms.