Living longer while living healthier is becoming easier, although the costs of healthcare are a challenge. While getting perfect healthcare isn’t available for everyone, advances in healthcare tech can still change your life for the better.
As you enter your senior years, keep in mind that feeling younger for your age than previous generations are still within reach. Here are a few healthcare tech advances that are available to almost everyone–though you may need to visit a different clinic or hospital to see if it’s worth your time.
Home and Mobile Biometrics
The ability to perform basic blood tests, check blood pressure, and perform other biological measurements or biometrics can help you stay healthy and get the help you need faster.
The days of worrying about random WebMD diagnoses are over. While some people are naturally paranoid at any results, most people can benefit from getting daily reports about general health or specific reports about a known problem.
For many Boomers, clinic visits can be a hassle. Whether you’re going to a distant doctor, waiting at a community clinic, or going through the headache that is some Veterans Affairs clinics is enough to delay or completely stop healthcare plans.
With blood tests and other tests able to work with mobile devices, getting your periodic health information to professionals is easier. For a wider audience, the ability to take pictures and video of medical concerns becomes easier with better image quality, faster internet, and the convenience of mobile devices.
Social Medical Care and the Other Social Security
Social security may have a rocky future, but there’s another type of security that Boomers need to worry about: social engineering.
The gig economy, jobs via apps, and home healthcare will come together in big ways in the future. Don’t be surprised if contractor or freelance medical services are knocking at your door in the next decade.
Licensed nurse apps, compounding pharmacy deliveries, physical therapists showing up at your home or joining you at a local gym, and other ways to connect with professionals without being bound by a hospital will likely arrive on your mobile device.
This is the time to learn one of the biggest lessons of the current tech world: trust, but verify. With customer convenience comes criminal convenience, but there are ways to protect yourself in most situations.
When embracing the gig economy now and during your senior years, take personal responsibility in vetting your freelancers. Learn their background, quiz them on their credentials, and have a plan for if they take the money and run.
Elder abuse is already an issue, and it’s hard to know if your health will leave you vulnerable. If you have family that can assist, make sure that they know which app you’re using and how to keep an eye on you–which can be easier with smart camera apps and smart home security.
If you think you’ll be living alone, setting a power of attorney to a trusted friend or family member can give them the power to intervene if you have a lapse of judgement while under the care of the faster-moving future.
Get in touch with a healthcare tech expert to discuss other great improvements that will enhance your medical success.