Eric Topol, MD, Discusses the Role of Technology in Healthcare Delivery

The presence of inexpensive centers and new data collection tools show promise in cutting costs as providers take a new path in care delivery, saids Eric Topol, MD, Director of the Scripps Translational Science Institute, Chief Academic Officer at Scripps Health, Cardiologist, and Professor of Genomics at The Scripps Research Institute. “For example, why would you have a sleep study done in a hospital setting when you could do this in the convenience and lack of expense in one’s own home?” asked Dr. Topol. Additionally, Dr. Topol suggests that new technologies will allow consumers to control their own health information while improving their overall quality of care. He says an individual will be able to review their data in a very simplified way. For instance, a smart phone could directly provide important information to the consumer.