It has been a long time since doctors made house calls with a small black bag.  Today, the bag just isn't big enough to fit a CT Scanner or a chemistry profiler.  Technology has and continues to change healthcare at a rapid pace, to the point that doctors rely on technology to assist throughout the entire diagnosing process.

Given all of the technology and computer-driven tests, it is no stretch of the imagination to wonder when doctors will be replaced by robots.  A quick blood draw and body scan, and the Dr. Roboto will tell you exactly what is wrong and how to fix it.

According to real life Dr. Blanford, that day is possible, but not for a very, very, very long time.  Even now, testing is not perfect.  Different tests have different rates of false positives or false negatives, and people's body don't work exactly the same.  What might be a healthy range for one person, might be completely unhealthy in another.  And some tests are too expensive or expose too much radiation to be used frequently, so providers narrow down the diagnosis options using other tests first.  

These are all things that go into the "Art of Medicine," as Dr. Blanford refers to it.  Healthcare is far from exact.  The piece that technology lacks--and probably will lack for a long time--is intuition and an understanding of the whole picture.  Through their experiences and relationships with each individual patient, providers begin to develop a gut instinct that guides them through the diagnosis process to a more accurate result, without putting too much unnecessary stress on the patient's body.

On this episode of the Perry Health Pulse podcast, Dr. Blanford discusses how providers navigate the inconsistencies and imprecision of healthcare while relying more and more on technology.  

Learn more by visiting www.perrymemorial.org/podcast