Re:The Apple Watch heart monitor sends too many people to th...
by TeMPOraL on Friday October 02, 2020 @03:51PM
(#24666417)
Wait - but if I'm reading the article correctly, it's not the case that all these people are flooding the ER, requiring urgent care. An alert pops up, a person is concerned, they decide to schedule a visit to their doctor.
If the healthcare system - paid healthcare system - can't handle a slow baseline increase in non-emergency visits, then something is seriously wrong with this picture.
Re:The Apple Watch heart monitor sends too many people to th...
by throwmeaway_pls on Friday October 02, 2020 @03:51PM
(#24666416)
That really does sound like ideology cloaked in common sense. Demand for great healthcare is already essentially infinite no matter what new technology comes along, and we need a sane way to deal with that. Pointing fingers at the demand side is a common diversionary tactic.
Re:The Apple Watch heart monitor sends too many people to th...
by pixelbash on Friday October 02, 2020 @03:48PM
(#24666397)
> Further, such an influx would have knock-on effects on unrelated patients, whose care would suffer due to the severe lack of resources.
Hypothetically, let's assume over a long period of time new devices are alerting users to possible medical conditions. Those appointments are paid for (I'm guessing). Will that money not fund more availability over time? The supply of doctors is not supposed to be fixed.
What would be more likely to happen in that scenario, is that so many people would be seeking care that the 5% who were positive would be unlikely to even get the care they need.
Further, such an influx would have knock-on effects on unrelated patients, whose care would suffer due to the severe lack of resources.
This is all magnified if the resource is not a general practice physician, but a specialist.