A Study on an Application System for the Sustainable Development of Smart Healthcare in China

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to explore ways to apply information technologies such as big data, Internet of things (IoT), mobile internet, and so on to the healthcare industry. By analyzing the impact path of such high-techs on healthcare, it intends to propose an application system for the sustainable development of so called "smart healthcare". It identifies the influencing factors of smart healthcare from three different perspectives: society, economy and environment. It then constructs an indicator system containing 14 factors, and comprehensively analyzes the importance and dependence of the factors by using Fuzzy Decision-making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) and Interpretative Structural Modeling Method (ISM) based on a multilevel hierarchy model. Using the theoretical framework of scientific research methods, this paper reveals the hierarchical path of the sustainable development of the whole intelligent healthcare which starts from the social level, combines the social and economic levels to achieve the balanced development of benefits, and finally brings the benefits to the environmental level. Based on this finding, this paper develops a sustainable application system for intelligent medicine in three levels: government, enterprise and user. The development of the sustainable application system for smart healthcare can provide theoretical guidance for model application evaluation.

Conceptual Framework for Smart Health: A Multi-Dimensional Model Using IPO Logic to Link Drivers and Outcomes

“…Through the improvement of medical equipment, the optimization of treatment processes, and the ability to diagnose and predict diseases, the application of smart technology has changed the method of value creation in the service system, which has led to the transformation of organizational structures, ecosystems, and innovation models of modern healthcare services [ 57 , 58 , 59 ]. In the context of smart health, while some small healthcare institutions may not be able to provide certain healthcare services due to limited medical equipment or the skills and capabilities of medical staff, these issues can be overcome with the help of telemedicinal services [ 60 ]. The health service represented by “Internet health” can make it easy and convenient for patients to receive medical treatment and to ensure medical fairness.…”

“…Several countries, such as the USA, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia, and Canada, have designed and implemented national schemes and indicators with which to measure health system performance, such as efficiency, sustainability, and safety [ 74 ]. In addition, different studies have introduced different healthcare goals, such as confidence in the healthcare system [ 21 ], achieving a rational allocation of healthcare resources [ 60 ], etc. A cross-country comparison, however, requires a comprehensive, international framework such as that of the WHO [ 75 ].…”

“… Technology Services 7 [ 86 ] This term, which inherently integrates ideas from ubiquitous computing and ambient intelligence applied to the future P4-medicine concept, is tightly connected to concepts of wellness and well-being, and incorporates big data, collected by vast quantities of biomedical sensors and actuators, to monitor, predict, and improve patients’ physical and mental conditions. Technology Efficiency Health 8 [ 60 ] Intelligent medicine refers to the construction of an interactive platform for the sharing of medical information based on electronic health records and the comprehensive use of the IoT, internet, cloud computing, big data, and other technologies to realize the interaction of patients, medical institutions, and medical personnel and equipment, and intelligently match the needs of the medical biosphere. Technology Services Efficiency Sustainable 9 [ 8 ] The infrastructure and technology of smart cities reconstruct the thinking behind existing healthcare systems (e.g., m-health, e-health, etc.)…”

Smart Health Ecosystem and Current Application Examples

“…The conceptualization (naming) of information technologies in health services was examined under different names instead of a single terminology. These are the ones that are going to intelligent health (Tian et al 2019;Xue et al 2021), digital health (van Velthoven et al, 2019Uysal and Ulusinan, 2020), e-Health (Kilic, 2016; Country and Attila, 2020) and 4.0 Health (Büyükgöze, 2019). However, since "smart health" is a more inclusive title than these names, the use of this concept was preferred in this study.…”

“…Bilişim teknolojilerinin sağlık hizmetlerinde kavramsallaştırılması (isimlendirilmesi) tek bir terminoloji yerine farklı isimler altında incelenmiştir. Bunlar; akıllı sağlık (Tian et al, 2019;Xue et al, 2021), dijital sağlık (van Velthoven et al, 2019Uysal & Ulusinan, 2020), e-Sağlık (Kılıç, 2016;Ülke & Atilla, 2020) ve 4.0 Sağlık'tır (Büyükgöze, 2019). Bu isimlerden "akıllı sağlık" daha kapsayıcı bir başlık olduğu için bu çalışmada bu kavramının kullanımı tercih edilmiştir.…”