Keynoter shows drone technology improves patient outcomes, access

Despite health care’s risk-averse reputation, the COVID-19 pandemic proved hospital leaders could rapidly embrace change, as evidenced by their swift adoption of telehealth, said Zipline CEO Keller Rinaudo Cliffton at AONL 2024. "COVID was almost like a permission slip for innovation," Cliffton said. “You have to find new ways of doing things." Zipline, which made a name for itself by curtailing maternal mortality rates and vaccine waste in Africa — can deliver medications and blood products to remote hospitals and homes, within minutes. “These are the populations where we can have the biggest health care impact,” he said.  Describing convenience as “a necessity for the underprivileged” instead of “a luxury for the rich,” Cliffton said that health care needs further innovation, especially to address access issues.