The World in 2030

The World in 2030 297
By 2030, humans will be receiving a significant part of their
healthcare via telemedicine and the networks (with adequate
security over private data) will provide storage for your
personal medical data and records which you, or a medical
professional who has your approval, can access at any time
from anywhere in the world.
Plastics and Healthcare
Plastics of one sort or another already play a major role
in healthcare bringing their inherent advantages of low
cost, light weight, durability and sterility. But some new
applications of plastics in healthcare are non-obvious. As a
BBC story revealed in May 2007:
Scientists have developed an artificial plastic blood
which could act as a substitute in emergencies.
Researchers at Sheffield University said their creation
could be a huge advantage in war zones.
They say that the artificial blood is light to carry, does
not need to be kept cool and can be kept for longer.
The new blood is made up of plastic molecules that
have an iron atom at their core, like haemoglobin,
that can carry oxygen through the body. 520
And, as we begin to monitor our own physiology on a semipermanent
and permanent basis, plastics will be used for