Healthtech on Rise
The healthcare industry is one of the fastest adopters of digital technology. Today’s new-age healthcare technologies are enabling organisations to unlock greater efficiencies and offer patients quality healthcare experience
The future of healthcare matters to organizations across industries, and it takes the right people, the right mindset, and the right approach to make improvements that will positively impact people's health. A global surge is seen in demand for remote healthcare IT services and solutions.
A recent report from HIMSS found that 47% of companies are expected to expand their use of connected health technologies over the next few years.
The Opportunities and Challenges in Healthcare
-
Lack of interoperability
EHRs are now used across the medical landscape, but there are significant problems that need to be addressed for EHRs to live up to their promise. Over 85% of office-based doctors use an EHR system, but most doctors are calling for change. In a 2021 poll, 63% of doctors agree that EHRs have improved patient care, but 71% think that EHRs are a cause of physician burnout. Even worse, 69% of doctors indicated that they have less time for patients because of the time they spend writing and reading EHRs. Clearly, there’s a need for change.
The specific concerns these doctors raise highlight the value of health information technology. In the same poll, doctors called for change in the user interface of EHR systems and improved interoperability between EHR systems.
Act, passed in 2016, charged regulatory agencies with creating standards for interoperable, usable and accessible EHRs. It won’t be enough to just have electronic records — you’ll have to be able to share and receive records from other providers, even ones outside of your system.
Cures act: Rules set by CMS and ONC require data exchange via FHIR APIs. Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, CHIP, and other health plans on federal exchanges must meet CMS requirements to share member data with other payers and offer provider directories to members via FHIR APIs
-
Optimizing clinical workflows
Clinicians and staff need access to actionable information at the point of care. But when workflows aren’t optimized, providers are forced to deal with incomplete information, alert fatigue and delays. For example, nearly half of clinicians responding to a KLAS survey said that their EHR system loads too slowly. EHR dissatisfaction is also a key factor associated with clinicians' likelihood of resigning. EHRs and integrated technologies need to make the best use of clinician time and efforts.
-
Cybersecurity Threats
Your patients trust you to securely hold onto all their most personal data, including personally identifiable info, medical records, and payment methods. Unfortunately, the rising risk of cybersecurity attacks endangers all that data – and the reputation of your healthcare centre.
In 2021, the rate of cyberattacks against healthcare centres tripled. Nearly 50 million people had their protected healthcare data breached as a result, resulting in costly shutdowns and the erosion of patients’ trust.
Yet, to this day, almost half of all devices used in healthcare settings remain vulnerable to cybersecurity threats. But it doesn’t have to be that way.
-
Telehealth Implementation
As evidenced by its rapid growth in 2020, telehealth was key in providing patient care while managing the risk of COVID-19 transmission. In response, virtual visits peaked in April 2020 at 78 times higher than their prior rate.
Since that initial jump, telehealth visits have stabilized at 38 times higher than pre-pandemic levels, showing their popularity with patients. And that’s a great thing. The improved accessibility to healthcare makes it easier for physicians to help patients manage their conditions. Plus, the virtual visits allow you to handcraft the ideal patient experience every time.
More than 75% of patients show interest in telehealth, yet utilization rates remain in the 50% range.
-
Patient Experience
A positive patient experience is a must if you want to boost care outcomes, retention rates, and profitability. When given favourable care experiences, your patients are more likely to adhere to medical advice. Better healthcare outcomes follow, boosting patient retention rates and lowering malpractice risk.
But what does an excellent patient experience look like? Oftentimes, it all starts with self-service systems, like EHR software with online patient portals. Through these systems, your patients can conveniently make appointments, speak with healthcare professionals, and manage their bills. The software helps streamline your physicians’ workflows as well, so they can provide timely services while expertly coordinating care.
Solution to the challenges
Although change can prove difficult, it’s vital that you address all the challenges one by one. For the best results, consider taking a holistic approach to overcoming current healthcare issues by setting up a fully-integrated EHR solution.
With EHR software in place, you instantly upgrade your cybersecurity, care approach, payment models, and so much more. Customizable workflows promise to keep physician burnout at bay while improving the patient experience across the board.
The Role of Healthcare IT Support
Interoperability:
At its core, healthcare information technology is all about achieving interoperability between disparate Health IT systems. Healthcare IT experts help you achieve interoperability by carefully-selected integration solutions and maintained with prompt and effective services. These integration solutions should be scalable and flexible so that your network can grow along with your facility.
Security and Compliance:
Information technology’s role in interoperability also puts it on the frontlines of your facility’s security team. Healthcare IT standards, patient privacy rights and patient well-being all require a trustworthy, secure network that is transparent and easy for your staff to use but opaque and secure against unauthorized users. A healthcare IT services provider can help your facility initiate best practices for network security. Healthcare IT service providers must align their services with strict compliance requirements (e.g., HIPAA, ONC, CMS) to lend to the success of their healthcare organization. Today’s patients expect their data to be secure, and we can help establish your reputation as a trustworthy steward of patient data.
Stay Competitive
To stay competitive, you cannot maintain the status quo. Collaborative cloud technologies, mobile solutions, enhanced security, and an optimized IT environment will push your organization ahead of the competition. Healthcare IT experts understand the many healthcare IT challenges you must face in the ever-changing technological landscape. Healthcare IT service providers assist you and your organization in staying ahead of the curve.
There are many other benefits of Healthcare IT services to provide you with a seamless technology experience, allowing you to transform the patient experience.
The Benefits of a Healthcare IT Provider
Quality of care: Technology plays a vital role in today’s medical facility, but your staff needs to focus on patients. Well-designed and reliable technology frees up the time and attention of your staff, enabling them to focus on patient care. Furthermore, a robust network allows your facility to implement powerful new tech, like the latest monitoring devices.
Accuracy: Errors are inevitable when hardware and software aren’t designed with the needs of end users in mind. Our technology can help ensure that your team members are more successful as they input and verify codes, leading to fewer medical errors. Reduced errors means reduced costs — and better patient outcomes.
Security and privacy: Network security is crucial for any healthcare provider. It’s not merely a matter of meeting regulatory requirements, but of protecting your investments into equipment and ensuring the privacy of patient health care records. Data security is a vital component of your credibility and reputation.
Reduced costs: The right healthcare IT provider can save you money on the purchase of telecom and wireless networking products, give you a competitive advantage in your marketplace and save you money as you implement new technologies. Information technology can help your facility operate more efficiently in many ways, from automating repetitive tasks and managing a large staff to quickly putting the right information in front of the people who need it.
Seamless collaboration: When your network is working as it should, your staff always have access to the information they need to provide the best possible care for patients. Teams can only operate as teams when they can effectively communicate, and information technology makes that possible.
Disaster recovery: Your patient’s medical records and billing information is too important to be lost due to a power outage or a failing hard drive. Worldwide Services can implement technologies that will ensure speedy recovery of your systems and your data in the event of a disaster or emergency.
Hiring Healthcare IT Service Provider
Leading enterprises are moving to a value-driven IT service sourcing model fit for the digital age. It is imperative that you look at the right parameters applicable to assessing Healthcare IT experts
- Depth of solutions/services offerings
- Quality of delivery team; onshore consulting talent; employee satisfaction and ability to attract and retain talent
- Service delivery model agility; ability to ramp up
- Focus on innovation
As a company with years of experience in US Healthcare IT services, KPi-Tech can offer high-level support that improves your business. In the past decade, we have successfully delivered integrated US Healthcare IT solutions.
No comments yet