Healthcare has always been rich for data generation. After all, it is the only industry with having a great amount of data. The volume and variety of data gave a thought to invent something that can manage this stuff. And then, Big data came into existence. It’s not only big but bigger – more than ever imagined.

The evolution in data generation started from smartphones. Applications empowered them to be used for all precautionary purpose right from pedometers, to calculate walk distance and calorie intake, to set a diet plan. A huge number of us are presently making the best use of this innovation to help us live a healthy life. Moreover, a flow of wearable gadgets has come up such as Fitbit, Jawbone and more that enables you to upload your progress data to compare it with the entire community.

The demand for doctors and physicians against their availability is a bigger issue. Moreover, to avoid medical malpractice, access to knowledge about laws and expert advice should be in reach. In the meantime, a law – HIPAA is framed to make it easier for people to keep health insurance and secure a patient’s sensitive data.

There are few wearables and smart machines that are now implemented to send respective readings to more than one receiver. Though we have successfully eliminated latencies with other advanced alternatives, however, the insight for its best application is yet to be figured out.

Treatments that can prove best for one patient, may not work up to the mark for another. Interventions are tough to track whether it has been benefited by the patient or not. Suggestions for the physicians are difficult to reach out at the right time.

As mentioned, healthcare is surely a data-rich industry but is poor in terms of potential information. Uncountable data is available from which it is difficult to filter the accurate information required in certain circumstances. From this, it is obvious to look around for ways that can allow quick access to precise information on a larger scale.

The major challenge is all the healthcare data is available but there is no such system to determine how to harness this lot of data.

WHAT HAPPENS WITH THE ENTRY OF BIG DATA?

Big data comprises information about routine medical activities like doctors’ suggestions, clinical history, medical insurances, drug information. Additionally, new data generated from social media, forums and hosted sites along with machine data.

Big Data is not just about volume. It covers three dimensions of data for healthcare :

Volume: Megabytes to Terabytes to Petabytes

Velocity: Highly unpredictable data generation

Variety: Variety of formats with different standards.

Since the inception of Big Data, there has been a new technology innovation with each passing day. Various data environments along with Hadoop and columnar database were brought into existence for harnessing the data.

To understand the functions from the user’s perspective let’s explore real-time scenarios. Here’s an example of how it works: Kitty approaches her physician for an annual health report

With the help of Big Data and cloud, Kitty’s physician Dr. Joseph has all her medical history as shown in the above patient report. Kitty mentions to Dr. Joseph that – she has been traveling a lot, eating out and not exercising regularly. Dr. Joseph notes down various observations such as an increase in HbA1c levels and more. After the examination Dr. Joseph notes down further concerns of Kitty in her EHR.

Kitty is excited to receive remedies for her health concerns and provides permission to her care team for accessing relevant data. She also joins a gym near her home and further connects with a dietician. The gym, a trainer reviews Kitty’s vital signs and other relevant healthcare data she has allowed to share.

The outcomes from Big data analysis of Kitty help the trainer to set a fitness program that is compatible with her requirement. Trainer suggests Kitty download the app and start her health activity. Dr. Joseph monitors Kitty’s activity and sends his endorsement.