Life science and health care is the industry which is a late adopter of digital innovation but never left untouched by this. For life sciences companies who are looking to transform digital technology, here are the latest tech trends they should focus on.

Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning

One of the biggest challenges for life sciences companies is the time it takes to develop a product or drug, it varies from 7-10 years.  A lot of this time is spent in reviewing and analyzing data, which can be reduced by using AI and ML. Researchers are focusing on writing AI scripts that can analyze the structures and unstructured data and present the meaningful value to the research community so that they can make faster decisions. AI can be used to select the right patient and sites for clinical trials to accelerate the trial process. Using AI and machine Learning, you can train the system to analyze people, drugs, trial results and regulations to expedite the drug delivery process. 

Automated Data Extraction

Data extraction is a critical step for life science companies and regulatory agencies. Companies can use automated scripts to read relevant research data, historical trends to make better business decisions. Regulatory agencies can use it to read the submitted data and analyze it and make decisions like who to send the data for review. Regulatory agencies can use this to inform the drug manufacturer or public as well about the safety concern of a drug or ingredient. 

Natural Language Processing

Reading unstructured data and understanding it in context of language and research has always been a challenge for life science companies. Additionally, companies that are submitting drugs in multiple markets have to face the challenge of translating content and labels in different languages. NLP can help this, It can be used to read unstructured data like texts, comments and data collected from kiosk in context of the scenario. NLP can be combined with machine learning to train the system and extract the right meaning. 

Blockchain

Managing and securing data is big for life science companies. Blockchain seems to be the right solution for clinical trial, drug delivery and supply chain management. It can be used to secure patient health records, trial outcomes, historical data, communication among stakeholders, and other related data. Some blockchain platforms are being launched to cater to the life sciences, there is more need to understand the use cases and come up with the right solutions.

Mobile Apps /Wearables for Data Collection

Last 10 years have seen an explosion in mobile apps and wearable for health and fitness. Life science companies were initially slow to adopt to these technologies, however, they are focusing more on this now. It really makes the clinical trial process faster and accurate. You can give apps and wearables to patients to gather the data in real time and make the right decision. Overall, these technologies make the process faster and less costly. 

Piyush Jain is CEO and Founder of Simpalm, a custom software development company based in Bethesda, MD.