FINAL PRESENTATION

Hi, before to start I would like to tell you a little bit about what is the fourth industrial revolution.

So, it is known also as Industry 4.0 to name an era of connectivity, this name is a term coined in
2016 by Klaus Schwab who is the Founder of the World Economic Forum (WEF) which is an
international non-governmental organization for multinational companies. Likewise, it has been
characterized for being a fusion of advances in artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, 3D printing,
other technologies. Basically, I do think that it is the collective force behind many products and
services that are fast becoming indispensable to modern life.

Well, my name is Barbara Murga and today I’m going to talk about THE IMPACT OF THE FOURTH
INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION (4IR) IN THE HEALTH SECTOR.

Apart from the results and consequences that technology has had around the world, the impact of
this era is said to be changing the way health is understood, transforming the methods of
treatment and diagnosis as well as the relationship between health professionals and patients. In
spite of the 4IR has recently been implemented, it’s having a major positive impact on the health
sector. Essentially, for the effective application of disruptive technologies and health professionals
is essential to make this change possible.

In fact, it is said that the most popular advance in technology is the artificial intelligence (AI) which
is the skill of a computer or a robot managed by a computer to do things that are usually done by
humans. Actually, some of the most used AI systems in United States, Netherlands, United
Kingdom and Singapore are patient-oriented AI, Clinician-oriented AI, and Administrative and
Operational-oriented AI, all of them has been applied to analyze picture, for instance, in radiology,
there is a AI computer that can read and explain you an X-rays, at the same time, in pathology,
also it can give you a detail report about a microscope picture.

Moreover, it is useful to discover drugs. I mean, companies, such as Verge Genomics, works in the
application of machines that could identify drugs to combat diseases, such as Parkinson and
Alzheimer. AI computers work as a virtual assistant too, which can be programmed to help doctors
manage the daily work. This could include to organize a week calendar and priority tasks. Besides,
it can be functional for patients as a chatbot, because it can answer you some questions like
Where is the nearest hospital? or What are the hours of operation in this clinic? Finally, this
program may work like a virtual reality device, and if you don’t know, for medicine students it is
very useful because some university students can study and explore different environments
without putting patients at risk.

On the other hand, there is a technique that creates three-dimensional objects made of metal,
plastic and ceramics, this is de 3D printing which can create patient-matched products based on
the patient’s anatomy. For example, cranial implants and dental restorations. In fact, U.S hospitals
are said to have been grown in 3D technology over the past decade, I mean, in 2010 just three
hospitals in united stated had 3D systems, in 2019 more than one hundred hospitals worked with
this device; Well, the interesting with this is that in 2016 the FDA approve the creation of a drug
for an epilepsy treatment, it was a pill which was able to disintegrate quickly in water.
Additionally, researches are said to have been working with bioprinters to create cellular
constructs, skin grafts and organs, however, at the moment, it is still in an experimental phase.
Well, I do think that AI computers and 3D printing are incredible and innovators I believe that it
could have bad consequences if people don’t use them with common sense. Because, as I said
before, the uses and benefits that both of them have are impressive, I’m sure that the best is we
had better exploit that in a good way.

Finally, here we have some of the most positive results of the technology in the health sector, I
wanted to tell you the most known of them, I’m sure that there are more, but, I am going to talk
about some of them that are common around the world and not only just in developed countries.
So, improved communication, technology had a good impact in the relationship between doctors
and healthcare organizations. Then, big data, the 4IR have helped the health sector because
nowadays is easier to save big data in a short time in the cloud storage and also offers you a lot of
information about a specific topic. Likewise, technology has provided to the healthcare community
tools to improve patients care. As much as health apps and telemedicine has improved healthcare
because it brings the community an easier way to communicate with doctors and take care of
ourselves in a simple, healthy and correct way through technology.