Why Elixir is a Game-Changer for Healthcare Apps

When it comes to building healthcare apps, choosing the right programming language is crucial. Healthcare systems need to be dependable, handle lots of users, and deal with real-time data. This is where Elixir stands out as a great choice.

In this article, we’ll look at why Elixir development is becoming popular in healthcare, how it’s being used, and the problems it helps solve.

Why Elixir Works Well for Healthcare Apps

Healthcare applications need to be reliable, easy to scale, and fast with data processing. Here’s why Elixir is well-suited for these needs:

• Reliability: Elixir is based on the Erlang VM, which is known for being very reliable. This is important in healthcare where a system failure can have serious consequences. Elixir is designed to keep apps running smoothly, even when something goes wrong.
• Scalability: Elixir can handle lots of users and data without slowing down. As healthcare apps grow in users and data, Elixir ensures they can keep up with the demand.
• Real-Time Data Processing: Elixir is excellent at processing data in real time, which is necessary for applications like patient monitoring systems where up-to-the-minute data is crucial.
• Rapid Development: Elixir’s concise syntax and powerful abstractions enable faster development cycles, allowing startups to bring products to market swiftly.

For businesses wanting to take advantage of these benefits, working with an Elixir development company can provide the expertise needed to build effective healthcare solutions swiftly and efficiently.

How Elixir is Used in Real Healthcare Applications

Several companies and organizations are already using Elixir consulting to improve their healthcare solutions. Here are some examples:

• ScriptDrop and CoverMyMeds use Elixir to speed up how they handle prescription benefits and authorizations. Fast and accurate data processing is key, and Elixir helps them do just that.
• During the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) COVID-19 Hotline was created using Elixir. It was launched in just five days and served over 7.5 million people, showing how quickly Elixir can help get crucial information out to people.
• Ukraine’s NHS: The National Health Service in Ukraine used Elixir to create a new eHealth system. This update was part of a plan to improve their healthcare services, showing how Elixir can support nationwide healthcare improvements.

Tackling Key Challenges with Elixir

Elixir is a great fit for healthcare systems, especially when things need to be fast, reliable, and able to handle a lot of activity at once. Here’s how Elixir helps with some of the biggest challenges:

Handling Large Amounts of Data

Challenge: Healthcare apps often need to deal with tons of information — patient records, test results, data from devices, and more. It can get overwhelming fast.

How Elixir helps: Elixir is built on top of the Erlang virtual machine, which was made to handle lots of things at the same time. It can run thousands of tiny processes without slowing down your system. Tools like Flow and GenStage help manage data streams in a smooth and organized way, so even if the data keeps coming in fast, Elixir can keep up without crashing or getting stuck.

Working with Real-Time Information

Challenge: Some healthcare systems need to show information instantly — like a patient’s status changing, or a new test result being available.

How Elixir helps: Elixir makes it easy to build apps that update in real time. It has tools like Phoenix Channels and LiveView that let you build live, interactive features without needing a lot of extra tools or code. You don’t need to refresh the page or wait for updates — things just happen instantly. And it’s designed to handle thousands of users connected at the same time.

Building and Updating Systems Quickly

Challenge: In healthcare, it’s important to move fast — whether you’re fixing bugs, adding new features, or launching something new. But it has to be safe and reliable, too.

How Elixir helps: Elixir comes with tools that help developers build things quickly and safely. The Phoenix framework includes everything you need — from project setup to testing and performance monitoring. Compared to some other languages, Elixir code is often shorter and easier to understand, which makes it quicker to write and easier to maintain over time.

N.B. The quick launch of the WHO COVID-19 Hotline shows how Elixir enables rapid development and deployment of important health services. Engaging an Elixir software house can help meet tight deadlines while maintaining high quality.

Testing and Monitoring Built In

Challenge: Healthcare systems need to be super reliable. That means testing things properly and knowing what’s going on inside the app at all times.

How Elixir helps: Elixir comes with a built-in testing system, so you can easily check that everything works as expected. It also connects well with tools that track performance and errors, so you can spot problems early and keep things running smoothly.

Conclusion

Elixir is a powerful tool for developing healthcare applications that need to be reliable, scalable, and capable of real-time data processing. Its robust design ensures that these apps can adapt to the growing demands of healthcare environments.

If you’re considering using Elixir for your healthcare projects, Elixirator can provide expert guidance. We specialize in helping businesses take full advantage of what Elixir offers, ensuring that healthcare systems are efficient and effective.