Health past papers

(a)

A sensor can measure physical quantities, and convert them to signals that can be read by computers. So basically a sensor can detect, and then convert data.


(b)

There are many advantages to using a USB memory device for the storage of medical information. One, USB devices such as data sticks are portable. Two, these USB storage devices are very cost efficient (cheap).





Portability:


If the data is portable, data can be easily transferred between doctors, and patients. Thus, the data does not have to be sent over the internet which reduces security risks. But, another security risk arises with data sticks because they can be easily lost, and anyone can pick it up. Putting a password or some sort of security may overcome this problem.





Cost:


Data sticks are very cheap, opposed to their capability. A 16GB data stick can be purchased for about $30 a piece. 16GB is enough space to carry data for one patient. Doctors will be holding data such as scans, text information etc.


(c)

One advantage of the patients being monitored at home will be more space for the hospitals to accept other patients. If the patients are monitored at the hospital, other patients that need care may not be accepted because of the lack of space. In Japan there is currently a problem where hospitals become full, and some patients are rejected. If the patients can be monitored at home, other urgent patients can be accepted.



Another advantage for the hospital is that the doctors do not have to constantly monitor the patients at home. This reduces the work labour required for the doctors. The doctors will be notified when the patients at home are in an emergency from the devices. The two advantages leads to a more efficient environment for hospitals to function.



(d)

The two major issues with patient monitoring is the reliability issue, and the privacy of data issue.

Privacy of data- The data of the patient is private, and is confidential. There are different methods to monitor the patient. One method might be using a camera, a visual monitoring. Visual data is particularly private, and confidential. These data are transferred over the internet to the doctors, and therefore must be secured.

Reliability- The data transferred and the devices must be reliable. If there is a fraud in the data, the doctor can give a irrelevant diagnosis, thus the patient can be in danger.

Methods to overcome the problems:
For the privacy of data issue, one method may be to not use the camera. There are different methods to monitor the patient such as blood pressure, heart rate, etc. Another method to overcome this issue is to secure the data. In order to secure the data, both the patient, and the hospital will need to implement a security aid. One easy way to increase the security of both sides is to use a firewall. The firewall is like a filter, and regulates certain data to enter, and leave. Another method to increase security is encryption. Lets say that somehow some hacker managed to steal the data. If the data is encrypted with a code, unless the hacker discovers the code, he/she will not be able to view it.


For the reliability issue, the monitoring devices should be througly inspected before usage. If the device does not function during an emergency, it can cause death to the patient. To double the security, a back up or a spair device should be handed to the patient. The patient should also have some training on how to use the device, and some knowledge about the device. If the patient has knowledge about the devices, they can possibly spot obvious errors.

Online Pharmacy Spam and Scam

Increasing mobility due to the internet is now affecting the health market. Drugs can now be purchased online. This is called the online pharmacy. The main advantage of online pharmacy is that the patient can buy the drug from home. At the same time it is convenient to the patients, simultaneously it is advantageous for the pharmacies because they can reap a profit.



Are you fed up with all the unwanted e-mails in your inbox? The increased competition between online pharmacies had increased Spam, and Scam online.



Spam:

Spam is basically sending unwanted e-mails indiscriminately. Most of the time these e-mails will be advertisements. You probably have seen e-mails that advertise certain goods or websites in your inbox. Those e-mails are spam. The e-mail itself may not be particularly a threat, but the problem is the time that needs to be spent. Imagine your inbox filled with these unwanted e-mails. It will certainly take time to find the e-mail that you want to read. Thus, the e-mails can lead to an overload of the account. Sometimes these spam can contain computer virus, or can lead the users to websites that steal personal information. This is called phishing. Clicking links or opening files from unfamiliar e-mails are very risky. The best solution available for spam today is the anti-spam software. The anti-spam software implements a filter, which filters the unwanted e-mails. The filter is interchangeable by the user. Yet, the anti-spam software is not perfect, and will still allow some unwanted e-mails to pass through.



Scam:

Scam is an illegal act of deceiving online users. Some people may act as if they are a representative of an online pharmacy, and offer a drug at a cheap price, where the individual is truly a person with no knowledge about drugs. Scam is undertaken with the intention of either stealing money, or stealing personal information. Users will need to be careful that they are on an authentic website when they buy any good online.



Issues

Cost- of buying anti-spam software.



Ethics- Unethical to deceive people into spending money, or giving personal information



Reliability- The authentic website should have a method to prove that they are authentic to the users. The anti-spam software should be reliable, and not delete the wanted e-mails.



Source:

Patient Monitoring

You never know when the patient may be in danger from certain diseases, or symptoms. The faster the doctor can contact the patients in emergencies, the higher the possibility of surviving. Patient Monitoring comes in handy in these kind of situations. There are various tools available for monitoring patients today. The most common method will be the usage of a patient monitor. A patient monitor is an electronic machine designed to monitor for an example changes in heart rate, blood pressure, etc. These information are stored, thus can be transmitted to other machines by the usage of a wireless connection. If the heart rate of the patient goes under the normal heart beat, an alarm may set off in the doctor's office, indicating an emergency. As i mentioned before, the earlier the patients are treated, the lower the risk. This is a video link about a monitoring system used in Pakistan. Video

Advantages:

• Patients can be monitored autonomously


• Increased possibility of surviving emergencies

Disadvantages:

• Cost, like all the others, machines that deal with health are often expensive


• Doctors need extra training to use these devices


• In some cases, patients will need training to use devices as well

Issues:

equality of access due to the cost. The developed health care may not be distributed to all patients.

Reliability- The devices must be reliable. If there is a bug, not only it puts the patients in risk, but it could also waste the doctor's time.

Cost- The devices are often expensive

People and machines- Doctors, and sometimes patients need training to use the devices

Privacy- Private data is being transfered, and therefore must be secured. Ties in with the security issue.

Source

Medical advice online

Thanks to the internet and the developing technology, now we can gain some knowledge about certain diseases and symptoms. This is a link to a website that gives medical advice. The website given is only one out of the many websites that are available today. There are many ways to how the patient can gain knowledge from these websites. One is going through a questionnaire, and ultimately leads to some sort of solution. Another is directly searching for a disease using the search engine. Either way, the website will be using an expert system. An expert system is a software that attempts to reproduce a solution that an expert will give. Often these expert systems will have AI- artificial intelligence. One common method for the expert system to give a solution is, the questionnaire. By asking several questions, the system eliminates the irrelevant ones, and ultimately narrows it down to several possibilities. In order for this expert system to work, the website provider will need to have a database where all the information is stored. Now that we have seen the technical side, lets take a look at the advantages, and disadvantages.
Advantages:

• Individuals can gain sufficient knowledge about certain diseases
• Some of the websites can be used for no cost
• Easy to use

Disadvantages:

• Can occasionally be inaccurate
• Some websites require monthly payments

We should bare in mind that these websites are not doctors. Thus, using the information provided and deducing our solution is also risky. The information given in these websites are advices, and are not absolute solutions. A combination of consulting a doctor, and using the website will be the best.

Issues

Reliability- The information given must be reliable. The patients can be given the wrong information

Equality of access- Some patients may not be able to view these websites because of the lack of equipments.

Source

Drug development and marketing

Drug development is the process of introducing/producing a new drug/medicine to the market. It usually takes an average of 5 years or more to produce one drug because the health market is such a conservative market. (The drug market deals with human lives). Thus the cost to produce a new drug is also very expensive. Why does it take such a long time? Well, first of all the cure to a symptom or a disease must be discovered. This itself consumes a lot of time. After the discovery, the drug must be tested for side effects, and its toxicity. Testing, and refining is undertaken over and over. The whole entire process as a whole is very time consuming. Thankfully, the IT technology aids this process of producing a new drug. For an example, if a database is kept, simmilar data can be drawn, thus collaboration with other doctors can be desired. This will speed up the time it takes for producing a new drug. There are many other ways the IT system aids this process. After the drug is produced, it needs to be soled. The drug can be soled through online pharmacy. Take a look at the blog entry about online pharmacy.

Advantages

• Increased efficiency


• Cut time for producing a new drug

Disadvantages

• Techonology is costly

Issues

Equality of access- Techonlogy may not be provided for all companies. The richer the company, the better techonology they can afford.

People and machines- The people need to be trained to use the technology.

Diagnostic software

A diagnostic software is similar to the one explained in medical advice online. It is a software that can undertake simple diagnostic of the patient instead of the doctor actually diagnosing the patient. The patients can enter their symptoms, and a certain output will be given from the software. Often these are the name of the disease. For actually curing the disease, the patient will need to consult a doctor.

Advantages:

• Patients can undertake a self analysis


• Possibility of avoiding painful diagnosis such as shots

Disadvantages:

• The software is not perfect


• Many diseases have similar symptoms. If the patient undergoes a self analysis and purchases their own drugs, there is a possibility of making a mistake. Patients should consult the doctor after self diagnosis.

Issues

Reliability- The software must be reliable since we are dealing with human lives.

People and machines- People need training or instructions to use the software.

Prosthetic devices

Heart simulation:

IT technology revealed a new possibility to the health industry. This is the heart simulation. Using the simulation software, and animation, the heart can be simulated and viewed from different points. The heart can be separated into different sections using the software and animations, and the different sections can be viewed separately. Visit this website; it gives an overview of how heart simulations looks like, and how they work. Using heart simulations, various heart diseases can be prevented, thus cured.

Prosthetic hand/arm:

Prosthetic hands are mechanical hands designed to mimic the functions, and the appearance of the natural hand. Recent advancements in technology had enabled for each finger on the prosthetic hand to move separately as described in this article. The new prosthetic hand can hold credit cards, type on the keyboard, and hold a bag weighing up to 20kg. These are the main advantages of using a prosthetic hand.

Advantages:

• Compensate the lost hand


• Undertake actions such as drinking, typing

These are the disadvantages that follow the advantages:

• The prosthetic hand is not perfect, meaning cannot fully compensate the lost hand


• Very costly


• Uses a motor and if the battery runs out, it becomes useless


• Users need training

Here is a video of an individual who uses the prosthetic hand in his daily life. Video

Issues that arise are:

• Equality of access


• Reliability


• People and machines

Equality of access because these devices are very expensive. In fact the prosthetic hands are only still used by limited people. The reliability issue arises on the producer of the prosthetic. It should function properly. It should not crush a piece of paper when it is intended to pick it up. People and machines because the users will need training. These devices are fairly difficult to use, and will take time to get used to them.