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Healthcare Optimize Technology

The transformative impact of health tech: Navigating progress and addressing concerns

10/29/2024

by Bryant Robinson and Rosemary Joy

Health tech is undergoing a rapid evolution. These changes promise to revolutionize patient care, enhance diagnostic accuracy, and streamline healthcare operations. Despite these potential benefits, there is a mix of enthusiasm and skepticism about these advancements from clinical staff. Understanding and addressing these concerns is crucial for successfully integrating new technologies into health systems.

Current State of Health Tech

Resistance to new healthcare technology is not uncommon and is often rooted in concerns about privacy, complexity, cost, and job displacement. National Nurses United released the results of a survey of over 2,300 registered nurses and found that 60% didn’t trust their employers to implement artificial intelligence (AI) with a focus on patient safety. Furthermore—out of the 2,300 nurses—69% said their assessment doesn’t align with AI, as it doesn’t take into account the “educational, psycho-social, or emotional needs“ of patients.

Privacy concerns tied to AI also persist, with data breaches becoming a frequent issue. The available data publicly shared by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) only accounts for breaches that affect more than 500 patients, even though smaller-scale security breaches certainly do occur. Still, according to the HHS, over a million patient records in the United States were breached in August 2024 alone. The security risk isn’t going away. Healthcare’s ever-increasing reliance on technology and the critical need for thousands of clinical staff to access immense volumes of protected health information (PHI) daily will continue to drive these trends and make patient information more vulnerable.

Benefits of Technology Advancements

Despite the concerns, the benefits of healthcare technology are substantial. For instance:

• AI algorithms continuously monitoring patient vital signs provide nursing staff with alerts about anomalies, potentially preventing adverse events.
• Similarly, AI wearable utilization at home enables providers to monitor daily vital signs and determine appropriate interventions virtually, thereby avoiding a delay in care and promoting patient engagement.
• AI can offer real-time decision support to enhance patient assessment and treatment plans, thereby increasing both the accuracy and speed of care, particularly in critical care environments.
• The rise of remote patient monitoring (RPM) has shown promising results. According to a survey completed by the Cleveland Clinic, around 80% of Americans using health monitoring technology are experiencing significant physical and mental benefits.
• A more prominent advancement—telemedicine—continues to enhance the patient experience by increasing virtual engagement and access while leveraging convenience.

Recommendations for Success

To foster successful technology adoption, it is essential to bridge the gap between technology innovators and healthcare providers.

• Engage healthcare professionals early. Involve providers at the start of the development process to ensure practicality and relevance. Early collaboration helps ensure that new technologies address real-world needs and workflows.
• Incorporate patient insights. Include patients in the development phase to gather valuable feedback on usability and accessibility. Patient involvement can improve acceptance and overall satisfaction with the technology.
• Establish a governance framework. Develop clear protocols for the assessment, integration, and ongoing monitoring of new technologies. Through this framework, organizations will be able to address potential risks proactively and ensure compliance with healthcare regulatory standards throughout the adoption process.
• Monitor adoption through agile methodology. Utilize members of the governance team to encourage and monitor the adoption of new technology. To aid in this process, organizations should ensure that success metrics are trackable and reported. An adopted, agile approach would initiate an efficient integration process and allow for functionality to be introduced more rapidly, shortening the feedback loop for adjustments and enhancements.
• Collaborate with payors. Without proactive conversations about the intersection of tech-enabled treatments and insurance coverage, there could be a disconnect between the care a patient receives and their expectation of the final bill. Agreeing on items like RPM in advance enables providers to set realistic expectations for the cost of care.

Future of Healthcare Technology

Emerging technologies like AI, wearable devices, and remote monitoring are transforming healthcare by enhancing diagnostics, personalized medicine, and operational efficiency. These innovations offer real-time tracking and more tailored care while providing greater access to data that can inform decision-making and improve overall system performance. As a result, healthcare systems can become more efficient, expand access, reduce costs, and improve patient outcomes. Continuous innovation and adaptation will be key to fully realizing these benefits.

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To truly unlock the potential of these technologies, healthcare leaders must embrace them while addressing valid concerns such as privacy, ethics, and equity. By fostering collaboration, implementing strong governance, and involving patients in the process, the industry can build trust and ensure these innovations are integrated responsibly. With the right approach, healthcare technology can deliver long-term improvements in both care quality and system performance. Reach out to Sendero to get started.

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