Healthcare IT has the potential to revolutionize the way that people think about healthcare delivery, but it can only do so if it is designed and implemented in a way that can reach healthcare organizations quickly, integrates well with other technologies, and is user friendly, compliant, and secure. Let’s explore four key problems that healthcare IT needs to address in order to fully realize its potential and impact healthcare delivery.
Problem 1: Make New Software Easy to Use
A significant challenge for healthcare IT is making software that is easy to use for everyone involved, including providers collecting and entering data, billers collating and processing healthcare payments, and patients interested in learning about their health. Easy-to-use software enables providers to work seamlessly and efficiently with patients and enables administrators to understand the latest trends within their healthcare practices.
In today’s world, patients expect to have more access to their health information, with the 21st Century Cures Act normalizing the sharing of electronic health information. While this can enable patients to better engage with their health and take ownership of their outcomes, healthcare IT must permit this sharing of information in a manner that is easy for any patient to understand regardless of education status or technological aptitude.
Problem 2: Help New Software Exist with Old Software and Integrate with Future Healthcare Technologies
Even if new software is accessible to all stakeholders within healthcare, it must also co-exist with previous, current, and future technologies. For example, many healthcare organizations already have existing software that has collected data for the practice. Consequently, even if organizations want to improve the software that they use, they are hindered by a disinterest in combining data from current and legacy health IT systems with new technology because it costs significant time and financial resources. There is not a well-established playbook for this type of integration, so organizations must resort to inventing methods to transfer data from current systems to new ones.
Furthermore, organizations must prepare to integrate the current technology that they adopt with future technologies that they may want to utilize. For example, telehealth platforms, artificial intelligence analytics, and third-party healthcare entities (e.g., pharmacies) will need to communicate with your organization’s health IT to provide a seamless, efficient healthcare experience. Whether you’re collecting health data from wearables or incorporating technologies that examine social determinants of health factors to health outcomes, you must be able to integrate new technological tools into your adopted healthcare IT system to help providers give the best care possible and to enable patients to become champions of their health.
Problem 3: Be Compliant, Secure, and Private
Trust is fundamental to the provider-patient relationship and all interactions within health systems, including the technology that healthcare organizations employ. Adhering to data protection best practices and HIPAA laws that regularly evolve is a fundamental necessity for retaining patient trust and preventing data breaches. Outside experts who see best practices across multiple organizations can help incorporate and add new technology to your IT while balancing reporting, security, and privacy concerns for patients and providers alike.
Problem 4: Have Healthcare IT Reach Healthcare Organizations Promptly
A company that wants to create healthcare IT can face numerous challenges while developing its technology. Finding software engineers with the right skill set to develop the technology, determining market needs for healthcare IT, and seeking feedback from healthcare users on your technology requires a time commitment without revenue-generating activity (e.g., sales). Therefore, you should be incentivized to get your technology to healthcare organizations as fast as possible. Quick decision-making can be costly if the wrong choices are made, such as hiring the wrong people, tailoring the product inappropriately, or not adhering to all applicable rules and regulations.
By partnering with a custom healthcare software development company, you can develop your healthcare IT in a timely, cost-efficient manner. The team can use their knowledge and previous experiences to help you budget faster, hire appropriate staff, and collaborate with consumers to deliver a valuable product. A custom healthcare software development company can also help you avoid the trial and error involved in determining market fit, developing a workforce, and budgeting all the various costs involved in creating and securing your technology, which can lead to more time wasted and more money spent before getting your product to market.
In conclusion, novel healthcare IT has the potential to enhance healthcare delivery, but it can only do so if it reaches healthcare organizations promptly and is designed and implemented in a way that is easy to use, compliant, secure, and adaptable to new technologies. By addressing the problems outlined in this blog post, getting involved with a custom healthcare software development company can minimize lost time and avoid extra costs that can hinder your ability to be successful with your new healthcare information technology.
Here at OtterSoft, we help healthcare technology providers drive innovation and integrate smoothly with legacy systems to keep things in motion, address the challenges of healthcare innovation, and seamlessly sync information. To see how we can help you overcome the challenges of healthcare innovation, contact us today!
