Thinklabs Customer Survey Reveals Physician Predictions for the Future of Healthcare Technology Adoption Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic

NEW YORK, Jan. 28, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Thinklabs, maker of the smallest, most powerful stethoscope in the world, announced today the results of a proprietary survey¹ on healthcare workers' predictions for the future of healthcare after the Covid-19 pandemic. The study reveals new insights into the increase in telehealth and adoption of digital health technology to streamline patient visits.

Almost half of healthcare workers surveyed project it will take a year or longer for medical practices to return to normal, pre-pandemic operations. Safety is on top of everyone's minds, with a majority of clinicians predicting an increase in the use of PPE and digital waiting rooms for in-person visits. Additionally, a growing number of practitioners are incorporating virtual appointments into their practices, with almost a third reporting they are currently working from home. The use of technology to make patient visits safer is a trend likely to continue well into the future of healthcare.

"Gathering insights from primary sources on the frontlines of healthcare during the Covid-19 pandemic is critical to gaining a deeper understanding of how to move forward," said Clive Smith, CEO and founder of Thinklabs. "Understanding the changing landscape enables us to provide immediate solutions in the midst of this crisis, as well as to develop products and services that anticipate the enduring changes that will transform healthcare going forward."

Additional results from the survey revealed trends, including:

• Slow and steady recovery: Nearly half of healthcare workers think it'll take 12-23 months for healthcare practices to return to normal, with the median response being 12 months. A quarter of them predict it'll take 6-11 months.
• Decreasing patient load: Almost half (45 percent) of healthcare practices reported decreased patient load in 2020, and about a third (30 percent) had to decrease the number of staff.
• The rise of telehealth: The work-from-home movement affected healthcare workers as well as the general population, as almost a third of them said they were working from home, with 28 percent expecting to continue doing so more often.
• PPE is here to stay: 60 percent of healthcare workers expect that PPE will become a regular occurrence in the future, with 92 percent recording they were using PPE more often than usual. Expect to see your doctor in a mask going forward.
• Innovations in check-in: One in three healthcare workers eliminated waiting rooms and used just-in-time (JIT) scheduling. This could also affect the design and layout of physician offices, as more will require digital check-ins over paper forms to curb the spread of germs.

About Thinklabs
Thinklabs was founded in 1991 by Clive Smith, an electrical engineering graduate of Caltech. In the mid 90's, Smith read a paper in the journal Circulation, indicating that stethoscope acoustics had essentially not improved since Rene Laennec built the first stethoscope in 1816. Contemporary physicians confirmed that even top-of-the-line conventional stethoscopes did a poor job of amplifying heart and lung sounds, so Smith went to work to reinvent the vital medical tool.

After years of research, Smith found that he could detect the vibration of a stethoscope diaphragm using a high-intensity electric field—almost one million Volts per meter. The result: the electromagnetic diaphragm that's key to the audio quality of every Thinklabs digital stethoscope. The Thinklabs One marks a paradigm shift in stethoscope design—a bold move to eliminate the hollow tube styling that predates the American Civil War. The Thinklabs One has since been used as a reference in more than 300 peer-reviewed journal papers authored by researchers around the world.

Media Contact
Renee Rossi
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¹ Survey conducted online within the United States by Thinklabs from December 14-21, 2020 and January 6-13, 2021, among 194 U.S. healthcare workers (physicians, nurses, EMTs, etc.) in their customer network, ages 18 and older.

SOURCE Thinklabs