Apple's latest health features for the Apple Watch, including fall detection and an electrocardiogram (ECG), have sparked concerns about the potential strain on healthcare systems. The Watch will automatically call emergency services if a user falls and remains motionless, and it can alert users to possible heart problems. However, experts warn that these innovations could lead to an increase in unnecessary calls and appointments.
Richard Kerr, chairman of the Royal College of Surgeons' commission on the future of surgery, highlighted the risk of technology-driven hypochondria. 'Medical professionals will also need to be vigilant to the risk of misdiagnosis and overtreatment that this proliferation of personalised health information could bring,' he said.
Brian Fontes, chief executive of the US National Emergency Number Association, acknowledged the potential for false positives but expressed cautious optimism. 'These are the real beginnings of exciting innovation. I don't see, at least initially, an overwhelming number of false positives coming in. But only time will tell,' he told the BBC.
Aiden Doherty, a health devices expert from Oxford University, warned that the ECG feature could lead to more appointments for the NHS. 'Staff in the National Health Service are already time-poor. It is possible that many new patients might seek earlier, and potentially unnecessary treatment,' he said.
Apple plans to discuss the technology with emergency call handlers and will publish a support article on 21 September. The ECG feature has only been cleared by US regulators so far, but if approved in the UK, it could increase healthcare costs and patient anxiety.
