Image by Darko Stojanovic from Pixabay
Revolutionising APAC healthcare with 5G
Tech and health leaders discussed how 5G will enhance patient care in the region
Emerging healthcare innovations powered by 5G technology are transforming healthcare delivery across the Asia Pacific (APAC) region, health industry experts said.
In a recent health conference in South Korea, Dr. Gao Yujia of Singapore’s National University Health System said that 5G will continue to be a dominant force for connectivity in healthcare, despite the emergence of newer technologies.
According to Gao, the 5G wireless network will provide stable and long-range connectivity that is essential for 5G-powered technologies such as remote surgeries, holographic imaging, mixed reality, and advanced patient tracking.
“Wi-Fi is still a local network, it is only usable within the hospital itself regardless of how fast the speed. Remote patient monitoring and connected ambulances cannot be done with Wi-Fi,” Gao said.
Terence Wong, head of APAC 5G Industry, GSMA, echoed this, explaining that Wi-Fi is consumer-focused and less suitable for critical communications at the industrial scale.
“Wi-Fi is focused on consumers and not designed for large-scale critical communication. You will be okay if Wi-Fi is lost, but 5G is meant to support Industry 4.0. That is why there is end-to-end latency which might not be as present in Wi-Fi,” Wong added.
Experts also shared insights on how enabling remote medical procedures and training can be critical for treating patients in rural areas.
However, Chien-Chang Lee of Taiwan’s Ministry of Health and Welfare highlighted the need for the government to set up regulation infrastructures for the adoption of 5G connectivity and ensure that these solutions will help and not harm the patients.
“In Taiwan, we are working on a cloud template for hospitals to regulate that providers cannot do secondary use of data without permission of the hospitals. We need more clear applications that shows the real clinical benefits of not only the tech or operation benefit – but real benefits to the patients that can make a difference,” Lee said.
