Page 164 - Visions of the Future Chemistry and Life Science

148 P. KOHL ET AL.

• accurate and efficient modelling of body functions provides a test-bed
for the development of devices that are energy-efficient and less inva-
sive;
• specialist equipment is easier to (re)produce and more portable than the
‘specialists’ themselves.
Future medical training, diagnosis and – even surgical – treatment will
increasingly be performed remotely. Thus, the combination of sophisti-
cated sensory devices with advanced micro-manipulation equipment will,
together with 3D ‘interactive feedback’ models, provide new tools and
approaches for the medical profession.

8.5.3 Added value for society
The proper study of mankind is man
(Alexander Pope, An essay on man, 1733)

In silico technology is set to produce a quantum leap in our understanding
of the nature of man, for it is only through the identification of useful infor-
mation in the vast amount of data on ‘man’ that we will arrive at a genuine
comprehension of our biological nature.
Analytical bio-modelling is also set to make major practical contribu-
tions and to transform the way society handles health-related matters. The
‘added benefit’ of in silico technologies for health care includes the
following:
• New, interactive in silico teaching and educational tools will be avail-
able for doctors and the greater public. This will help to improve pro-
fessional skills and general health awareness. Future health-related
implications of an individual’s behavioural patterns or of various treat-
ment strategies can be assessed and compared on the basis of long-term
case predictions.
• In silico technologies will help health care policy development and
acute decision making. The latter will be based on improved access to
expert information, statistics, case reports, etc. Medium-term deci-
sions will benefit from the early recognition of epidemiological pat-
terns, etc. Long-term policies can be based on detailed investigations
into the cost-benefit-relation of restorative versus preventative strate-
gies which, undoubtedly, will consolidate the case of preventative med-
icine.