A computer-in-the-loop model for the transaction between care-providers and patients: A niche application for consumer electronics

Healthcare expenditure in many developed countries has reached such an unprecedented level that it cannot be sustainable unless some change in medical practice is implemented. In this paper, we examine a computer-in-the-loop model for the transaction between care-providers and care-receivers by identifying tasks that can be offloaded from physicians to computers in light of the state of the art of computer technology, as well as its evolution with time. Currently a number of consumer electronics innovations have found their way into healthcare applications. We anticipate that healthcare will be continuously benefited by such a trend.