Technology Revolution In Diagnostic Industry
The diagnostic industry is on the threshold of a phenomenal revolution. Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotic process automation, digitization and synchronization of Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) with automated processing are the harbingers of this enormous change, boosting extensive research and data collation, besides creating a boom of sorts in the medical test equipment manufacturing industry. This will positively impact the overall level of health, disease awareness and preventive health strategies and encourage the endeavor towards making diagnostic services available to all sections of society in the remotest parts of the country.
Accurate diagnostics is the basic foundation of the detection, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases for better quality healthcare, disease awareness and disease management. There is an ever-growing need for developing newer technology in the wake of the current pandemic scenario which has pushed the diagnostic industry towards tremendous growth, wherein several innovative tests were launched for the detection and diagnosis of the COVID-19 virus the world over, with quicker turnaround time, increased accuracy, cost effective and affordable techniques, as well as to make them accessible to patients of all strata of society. This further enabled healthcare providers and medical experts to determine timely and effective treatment modalities.
There is widespread recognition for the dire need for upgradation of technology in equipment manufacture of medical devices, testing methods and machinery, along with upgraded software applications (example - online consultation and health tracking applications, among others). By and large, the technology revolution in both pathology as well as radiological testing in the field of medicine has been aided by supportive public and private sector initiatives and incentives, government policies and programs. The Free Diagnostic Service Initiative (FDI) by the National Health Mission (NHM) under the Government of India and the compilation National Essential Diagnostics List (NEDL) – India being the first country in the world to take up this initiative - has positively impacted the overall level of health and disease awareness and preventive health strategies, endeavoring the provision of essential and accessible quality diagnostics in lab pathology and radiology fields at all public health centers, as well as assess the country’s disease trends and disease burden. Latest software applications have been implemented for the collation of data, boosting research in a big way. These endeavors have forged the way in making India as one of the leading manufacturers of medical devices in the world, by attracting FDI (foreign direct investment).
There needs to be complete paradigm shift from manual processing to automated processing. The implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotic process automation, digitization and synchronization of Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) with automated processing have revolutionized the diagnostics industry. The introduction of cobots (collaborative robots which are lighter and safer than industrial robots) as an assisted tool in lab testing, radiolology testing and data management (currently available only in high-end diagnostic labs), would streamline operations to a great extent, ensuring better accuracy, turnaround time, efficient use of staff and economic sustainability in the long run, thereby cutting down on human intervention in sample collection, handling & diagnosis and enabling increased accuracy and minimized error in reporting. AI will enable smoother data organization, collation and management and higher quality control standards, a larger volume of tests (making it economically sustainable in the long-term), and a reduction in the risk of human exposure to bio-hazardous material. It will further encourage an exploration of the potential in upgrading and enhancing the existing skills of technicians with training programs and workshops in AI-handling.
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