An aging population in developed countries and an expanding middle class in developing nations leaves few untouched by a growing demand for healthcare services.
This demand far outpaces the resources, both professional and financial, of most healthcare systems around the world. Consequently, healthcare reform is at the top of the political agenda in nearly every country from North America to Europe and Asia. Driven by government mandates and consumer demands, the introduction of new and oftentimes cutting-edge technology and services, such as electronic health records (EHRs) and telehealth solutions, will be a crucial component of curing the ails facing the healthcare industry.
Ovum’s healthcare technology research includes the following topics:
Electronic health records (EHRs) are a core part of healthcare IT and are often one of the first technologies providers adopt. Despite their significance, adoption rates have been historically low. This is starting to shift substantially as governments and healthcare organizations continue to explore methods to encourage adoption (i.e. federal initiatives, incentive programs, grant funding).
Privacy and security concerns remain an incessant challenge for vendors and providers alike. As more and more providers look to digitize patient data, it will become ever-more important to ensure that appropriate privacy and security parameters are put into place. Patients and advocacy groups push vigorously to ensure that data is protected in a secure way. More data means greater vulnerability and vendors will have to generate new solutions to combat potential threats.
Popular mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablet PCs, and mobile applications have been used to offer providers a better way of caring for patients and patients a better way to manage their health. The opportunities for creating and developing new solutions in this space are endless.
Telehealth, with its potential to improve quality of care, decrease healthcare costs, and increase access to care, is beginning to gain traction among healthcare organizations. In 2011 Ovum focused on the activities of large players in the video conferencing space, and in 2010 we researched the home monitoring/telemonitoring market. In 2012 we will look at the results of some large-screen trials into telehealth/telemonitoring in Europe, to examine the business case for telemonitoring and home healthcare.
Healthcare organizations retain an immense amount of data stored both electronically and on paper. Analytics and BI tools can offer great insight into this data and help organizations to make better decisions. Healthcare organizations are just starting to use BI, and examples of benefits include: payer evaluation of health plan members, ensuring superior hospital/office care, and enhancement of research practices and results.
