Health Apps Pros, Cons, and Remedies to resolve Challenges.pdf

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Healthcare App Benefits and Downsides with Ethical Considerations!
Healthcare apps and wellness trackers have gained traction during the last
decade. And, the social distancing protocol enforced by the pandemic has
accelerated the adoption rate of health apps like never before.
Check out these interesting stats on healthcare application development and
usage as per a study conducted by the online research portal sourcetoad.com:
 Healthcare app development has sky-rocketed with an average of 250
apps launched daily.
 The market value of medical apps was $40.05 Billion in 2020. According
to industry experts, this value will reach $100 billion by the year 2023.
 Healthcare app categories like telehealth and virtual care have gained
more popularity as compared to other categories: 74% of consumers
preferred telehealth services and 57% vouched for virtual care apps.
Healthcare apps come with endless benefits to patients, practitioners as well
as care providers. But, are all health apps secure and reliable? Health apps
have their share of downsides as they handle personal patient information and
sensitive medical data. Many are raising questions on the ethical implications
of patient data handling processes as well.

Let’s discuss in detail the advantages and downsides of medical apps. Also,
learn about the corrective measures and best practices to mitigate the existing
bottlenecks in the healthcare app industry.
Healthcare App Advantages
Advanced Patient Services
Telehealth apps offer convenient patient services like online appointment
scheduling/rescheduling/cancellation, remote doctor consultations for common
ailments, and e-prescription uploading. Advanced communication capabilities
like preliminary diagnoses via video conferencing and instant interaction with
doctors and other medical professionals using text messages, emails, voice
calls, etc. simplifies things for the patient community.
Reminder apps and e-prescription apps facilitate chronic disease management.
These apps help patients to stick to stringent medication regimes, set
reminders for pill intake, and refill medicines before it runs out of stock.
Pharmacy applications enable online medication ordering and door-step
delivery.
Clinical Assistance
Clinical assistance apps offer supportive software for medical practitioners.
Such apps come with medical calculators, clinical decision-making
functionalities, and disease diagnosis assistance functions. Medical
professionals can benefit from the various references and databases providing

information about drugs, healthcare terminologies, medical conditions,
symptoms of diseases, and guides on medication compatibility.
Healthcare Data Storage/Management
Healthcare facilities need to handle humongous data and hence data
management becomes challenging with traditional solutions. However,
healthcare apps integrated with EHR (Electronic Health Records) simplify the
processes of organizing and managing data effectively. These apps
automatically gather and record patient data like personal information,
demographics, previous treatment history, allergies, chronic conditions,
immunizations, radiology reports, billing info, etc. from different sources. EHR
systems enable providers to store medical data in a way that promotes clarity,
transparency, and accuracy.
EMR (Electronic Medical Records) stores information about patients’ clinical
data, ongoing treatment particulars, etc. Such records help clinicians monitor
patients in a better way, assess how patients are responding to a specific

course of treatment, and find out the patients who are due for follow-up visits or
preventive screenings.
Medical database software converts patient data like healthcare/treatment
history, medications, imaging/lab results, procedures, etc. into electronic data.
This data is categorized by employing various filters and is stored for internal
usage within the facility.
Wellness Tracking: Wearables & Fitness Apps
Fitness applications track the health vitals of users including steps walked,
calories burnt, heart rate, water consumption, body weight, etc. using wearable
devices. This provides users with quantifiable data on their health parameters
and level of fitness. These apps also set fitness goals for users and offer
dietary suggestions, encouraging them to practice a healthy lifestyle and
adhere to wellness regimes. Users get reminders for activities like drinking
water, exercising, and so on. Some fitness apps even make use of intelligent
strategies like offering positive feedback and even gamification for motivating
users toward a healthy lifestyle. Such apps monitor users’ health vitals and
provide a report of their progress periodically. The users can share their
fitness-related success stories on social media amongst like-minded people
and also opt for joint wellness experiences on social media.
Today, fitness apps are leveraging Artificial Intelligence to obtain the best user
outcomes. Machine learning/deep learning algorithms autonomously analyze
the healthcare care data collected by the app and the users’ behavioral
patterns gathered. This information is then compared with generic human
health data contained within a database and matched with the most befitting
predefined use case. The algorithms then, draw conclusions and provide users
with customized suggestions and corrective measures regarding exercise
regimes and diet.
Valuable Informational Resources
Healthcare apps are often a valuable and easily accessible storehouse of
informational resources for medical students. Students utilize this information
for gaining insights on health conditions, treatment, & medication, preparing
notes, and drawing inferences. Moreover, apps offer online study material,
lectures, healthcare podcasts, drug references, medical guidelines, healthcare
calculators, and even quizzes/tests on medical topics.
Practicing HCPs also benefit from the resources and information provided in
healthcare applications. Important case studies can be referred to while
treating complicated cases and conducting surgeries.

Healthcare App Downsides & their Ethical Implications
Despite the endless advantages of healthcare applications, this approach
involves downsides that raise ethical questions as below:
 Is there any protocol to ensure whether clinical data is being entered for
the right user at all times?
 Is patient data completely protected from security threats and hackers?
 Where does the healthcare data get stored and who can access this
data?
 Can the PHI of patients be used by the app owners or sold to unreliable
third parties?
 Can users completely trust the content published and the results
generated by healthcare apps?
Let’s explore these aspects in detail!
Data Authentication Errors
Several apps fail to verify whether the clinical findings, e-prescriptions, and
other medical diagnoses details are being entered into the profile of the right
patients at all times. As a result, the chances of costly errors are quite likely.
Such errors may lead to misdiagnosis, wrong treatment/medication, ending up
causing harm to patients, and can even be fatal for patients. Furthermore,
erratic data may adversely affect clinical research. If incorrect information is
used for forming therapeutic deductions, the effectiveness of the research will
be hampered and could put billions of investments at stake.
Security Threats
Cyber-security threats like ransomware, phishing attacks, data theft, and
unauthorized access can cripple the effectiveness of the healthcare
environment altogether. Moreover, data security breaches can lead to hefty
fines and penalties for medical entities that have not followed standard security
protocols.
Healthcare Data Ownership
Modern-day medical app technologies like AI, ML, etc. can predict user
behavior to the minutest detail. And, for obtaining the desired outcome, the
relevant contextual patient data including personally identifiable and biometric
data has to be fed to the app or system software. Hence, users need to enter
personally identifiable data in their profiles and other systems; for reaping the

benefits of systems like electronic medical records, biometric scanners, health
apps, activity trackers, video doctor consultations, and so on.
Moreover, healthcare data is a valuable source for research teams, analytics
identification, and marketers who depend on personal patient data to send
relevant promotional offers to their target audiences. As a result, app owners
might be tempted to utilize patient data stored in the app as a profitable
monetization strategy. Sometimes, data may be sold without the users’ consent
in unethical ways to the marketers who offer lucrative deals to app owners.
Clinical Accuracy of Healthcare Apps & the Trustworthiness of App
Content
The clinical accuracy and the reliability of quality and scientific correctness of
the published content are below average in some healthcare apps and fitness
trackers. The anomalies identified in healthcare applications include
incomplete information, inaccurate content, variation in content information,
improper responses to customer queries, delayed data processing, faulty alarm
systems, security gaps in functionalities, and inability to promptly respond to
emergency situations. Such inconsistencies may result in life-threatening
situations.
Coming to fitness and activity trackers, parameters like step count, health
vitals, etc. are not always 100% accurate. This may mislead users in the long
run, thereby minimizing the app’s usability.
Corrective Measures for addressing Health App Pitfalls
Data Authentication Protocols
A healthcare app should correctly authenticate the users’ particulars to verify
whether the right person is accessing or entering data into a specific user
profile. The commonest authentication measures include SSO, two-factor
authentication, and implementing technologies like facial recognition,
fingerprint readers, etc. within medical apps.
Take a look at how biometric authentication works!
Biometric Authentication System:

Data Security Practices
Strong encryption methodologies, multifactor authentication, and restricting
access to sensitive patient data are some of the data security measures that
are adopted by app owners. Proper data usage controls should be followed in
case of sensitive data. For example, while handling sensitive medical data, all
actions like uploading data to the web or sharing data with external sources
should be blocked. Managers are advised to log and monitor the usage and
access of healthcare data and conduct vulnerability assessment checks
periodically, to identify any weak points.
While exchanging data with connected devices powered by IoT, AI, etc.,
healthcare entities must adhere to these security practices. All the security
patches must be installed and the connected devices must be updated
regularly. During data exchange with connected devices, all the unnecessary
features must be disabled so that only the required data is captured.

Coming to users’ mobile devices; data should be encrypted in transit as well as
during storage, robust passwords must be used, and there should be a way to
remotely lock stolen devices. Users should be encouraged to update their OS
whenever required and install solutions for mobile security and device
management.
Segregating the wireless network of your healthcare organization into sub-
networks for different groups of users like staff, patients, visitors, third-party
partners, etc. is an effective security practice. This allows you to protect your
private network from external environments. It is also necessary to backup data
regularly on cloud-based systems, for retrieving sensitive data if damaged or
lost. The app owner must also check the security readiness of business
associates like insurance agencies, pharmacies, etc. with whom the app
exchanges medical data.
A Hack-Proof System & Continuous Monitoring
Healthcare providers must ensure that the patient data collected, stored, and
used by them is protected from privacy issues, unauthorized access, and
unscrupulous practices. So, developers of Healthcare app in USA must create
hack-proof software to protect PHI (Protected Health Information).
Internal healthcare networks within an organization are easy to protect as
these are mostly intranets that are isolated from other networks. The real
challenge is protecting medical data collected by health apps that function
across multiple open networks and are accessed from various locations. Also,
the existence of several interconnected systems within a healthcare
environment complicates developers’ tasks. And, even if the system is end-to-
end encrypted, security threats cannot be ruled out. The physical device used
to operate the software may lack privacy or safety measures that are usually
adopted while developing the application. Also, security practices may become
obsolete after a certain time owing to constant technology changes.
Therefore, building a hack-proof software system is not enough. You also need
to continuously monitor the app for security loopholes post-deployment and
upgrade the app’s infrastructure and security practices as per the changing
market requirements. You must necessarily adhere to security compliances like
HIPAA mandated by authorities.
Medical App Assessment Protocols
Certain mandated assessment protocols are being introduced to examine the
quality and security of healthcare software. The rating scale evaluates
healthcare apps based on parameters such as app aesthetics, user

engagement, the app’s usability quotient, feature set, and the correctness of
the information provided. For instance, MARS is a protocol for assessing
mental health apps.
Closing Thoughts:
Healthcare mobile app development is a complex, time-consuming, and costly
affair. It involves adherence to a host of regulations, specifications, third-party
integrations, and compliances. Also, post-deployment maintenance and
support is an essential prerequisite for the smooth functioning of the app,
rolling out updates, resolving bugs, and eliminating security woes. Such
requirements can be too much of a challenge for newbies and start-ups.
Therefore, it’s advisable for healthcare providers to partner with an
experienced healthcare application development company in USA that will
provide end-to-end services including post-launch support.

Health Apps Pros, Cons, and Remedies to resolve Challenges.pdf

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