Thanks for the blog, Thomas. I saw this session and had similar thoughts:
–Amazingly cool technology is great, but will this mode of care delivery be better for patients? I’m not sure the smarter tech=better care equation is a given.
–Simply put, many of the future models Dr. Crounse cites can be described as “proxy care”: the locus of knowledge and expertise (the doctor, typically) resides at some distance from the patient, whose care experience is moderated by technology, and/or a health professional who is trained to take over some of the MD’s functions. Seems to me that the public is already tired of proxy care; most want more direct, experienced human interaction.
–Not sure about Microsoft being the arbiter/portal to a universal care model.

I do agree, though, that health care seems woefully clunky in its myriad technological applications that don’t interface well.

It’s good to mix it up a little I suppose – some pragmatic presentations, some futurist/theory. I’ll be sticking to the former for the rest of the conference, though.