In the context of epidemics, including COVID -19, one of the significant lacunae is the non-presence of credible diagnosis mechanisms. In many cases, the patients who get infected with such viruses are not studied. Their past medical condition and travel history are critical to understanding. It is very integral to the process of diagnosis. There are no transparent methods of data collection that could be devised to assess the medical history and conditions of people’s illnesses. There is an imminent need to harp on a technology-driven process in data collection for various diseases. The methods used to track and trace COVID 19 virus can be used for other conditions. One of the other key challenges in the diagnosis process is the need to build sophisticated ways of testing such as Chest Computerised Tomography even if the patient tests negative for COVID-19. There is also an urgent need to develop management-level data collection in attaining diagnostic precision.
Precision in diagnosis can be life-changing; it is about the diagnosis and helping the patients make better decisions by providing them with the best options. This can be achieved if the examiner has access to a database or a repository containing the details of the previous cases. Further, effectively utilizing this information is pivotal in getting the big picture. The pandemic has created several new health conditions in people. Diagnostic tools can help develop a tailored treatment plan. This is possible only by improving diagnostic precision.
Achieving precision is a challenging task; there is many a chance you might encounter something very new to the medical world. Though healthcare has become sophisticated with research taking up diagnostics as a field of study, the tools or mechanisms to ease the diagnosis process have not come up even in the advanced nations. Having access to the best tools and proper diagnostic centers with infrastructural capabilities is the key to preventing another epidemic’s outbreak.
Precision diagnostic medicine augments healthcare. It helps in understanding how the disease spreads and where it spreads. By analysing its spread, scientists can better understand the potency of an outbreak in a particular genetic group. This helps the pharmaceutical companies in preparing medicines that will be more effective for that specific group.
Precision in diagnosis can be further enhanced by using modern technological advancement. Advancement in artificial intelligence is a boon to the field of medicine at large and diagnostics specifically. The usage of AI is already leading to a lot of understanding in genetics. Data quality and extent are crucial in diagnosis. Improving the quality of data and having access to longitudinal patient data can help improve diagnostic precision. This can eventually help in delivering personalized care.
The spread of COVID 19 has highlighted the need for more extensive cooperation among different actors cutting across borders. This helped the scientists to understand the disease better and create a vaccine accordingly. The need of the hour is also the same, which is integrating the available data and providing the diagnosis in a simplified way to the patients and the frontline workers.