Health organizations are embracing emerging technologies, but have to do more amidst changing consumer expectations
Consumer and employee expectations are changing, requiring continued investment in technology from health leaders.
A new report by Accenture has found that, as digital becomes increasingly more critical in all aspects of healthcare, organizations have to master a new set of emerging digital technologies to deliver convenient and effective care.
According to the findings, 94 percent of the 221 health executives surveyed said they believe emerging technologies have accelerated the pace of innovation over the past three years.
But while technology investments have progressed, healthcare organizations must do more to meet rising consumer and employee expectations for when, where and how they experience care.
For example, 77 percent of health executives believe their employees are currently more digitally mature than their organization, resulting in a workforce "waiting" for the organization to catch up.
IMPACT
The report contends that a combination of emerging technologies known as "DARQ" -- distributed ledger, artificial intelligence, extended reality and quantum computing -- will spark a step change in becoming healthcare's future digital foundation. More than 68 percent of executives believe DARQ will have a transformational or extensive impact on their organizations over the next three years, and 89 percent are currently experimenting with at least one DARQ technology.
Among other findings are that, of the four DARQ technologies, 41 percent believe AI will have the greatest impact on their organization over the short-term.
Thirty-eight percent of health organizations have already adopted XR across one or more business units, the most of any DARQ technology -- creating new ways for clinicians and consumers to experience and engage with the world around them.
Eighty-seven percent of healthcare executives agree that the integration of customization and real-time delivery is the next big wave of competitive advantage. And 82 percent agree 5G will revolutionize healthcare by offering new ways to provide products and services.
Meanwhile, 86 percent believe that consumers' digital demographics are increasingly becoming a more powerful way to understand their customers; and 68 percent agree that within the next three years, every employee in their organizations will be empowered with access to a team of bots to accomplish their work.
THE TREND
Globally, artificial intelligence in healthcare is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 43.5 percent from 2018 to reach $27.6 billion by 2025, ResearchandMarkets.com found this year.
The high growth of the artificial intelligence market in healthcare is attributed to factors such as rising funding in AI, the growing demand of precision medicine, effective cost reduction in healthcare expenditure, and accurate and early diagnosis of chronic diseases and disorders.
Twitter: @JELagasse
Email the writer: jeff.lagasse@himssmedia.com
