Technology in evidence based health and social care practice.

Question

How will technology play a role in shaping evidence based health and social care practice?

Answer

Recent news with regards to health and social care has been predominantly negative, highlighting a range of inequities, abuses and areas in which policy and reform isn’t believed to be working by the public. Perhaps it is this self-awareness and self-criticism attitude that makes the UK continue to strive for improvement and remain a global leader in progressive health care reform. However, many positive trends can be seen throughout the UK’s health and social care practice, including its development and implementation of modern technology to improve the efficiency and quality of its care. One such example is the implementation of electronic health records (EHRs) in order to improve communication and dissemination of patient information, to more effectively monitor trends in health care and to reduce costly and potentially dangerous errors. Applications and other smartphone technologies have allowed professionals to become more enabled to provide care, while empowering patients to more autonomously manage care. The longitudinal effects of the adoption of these technologies are not yet known, but anecdotal reports suggest they are beneficial. A focus on technological training and the critical analysis of research by health and social care professionals will be a key factor in ensuring the right evidence and technologies are used correctly within applied environments. As funding becomes increasingly strained in response to the existing social care crisis, the UK will be yearning to eliminate any possible waist and to maximise its efficiency every any way possible. Technology, and the ability for health care professionals to adopt technology in practice, will be central to this process.

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