Emerging Healthcare Technology Trends in 2023
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the healthcare business has experienced considerable changes and modifications, with a large contribution coming from developing technology in the field.
Important developments in the usage of healthcare technology have developed that will continue to influence its future in 2023.
According to HIMSS research, 80% of health systems in the next five years want to boost their investments in digital healthcare. The goal is obvious, but which technologies merit consideration?
Healthcare IT Market Overview: 2023–2030 Forecasts
The market for healthcare services worldwide has almost reached $7.5 trillion in 2022 and is expected to keep expanding, topping $9 trillion in 2026. In addition, the healthcare IT industry is expanding significantly. It reached $320 billion in 2022, surpassing Precedence Research, and is anticipated to reach $857.6 billion by 2030.
The need for remote monitoring, interoperability across healthcare facilities, and accessible and secure treatment is expanding, according to a new Deloitte analysis. Thus, healthcare experts and professionals, including those from a healthcare software development company, look for innovative medical technology to meet this need and have the intended influence on patient care.
Top 8 Digital Healthcare Trends for 2023
According to the most recent Future of Healthcare Report from the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS), more than half of the patients polled said they would be willing to utilize telehealth services. They all give them great marks for both quality and affordability.
Experts evaluate the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), cybersecurity precautions, remote patient monitoring (RPM), FinTech integration, cloud migration, and Big Data analytics as the newest advancements in healthcare technology that already satisfy consumer expectations. These innovations have successfully influenced the global digital health environment by withstanding the pandemic test.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies are gaining ground in terms of other global healthcare technology developments. They are the ones that best meet the demands of the patients. Healthcare organizations have the potential to empower analytics and management.
The most promising developing technologies in healthcare are cognitive automation (CA) and robotic process automation (RPA). By combining ML and AI with other technologies, increased compliance, control, and capacity processes are automated to the next level and enhanced.
The top healthcare digital transformation trends in 2023 are as follows:
1. The IoMT (Internet of Medical Things)
The worldwide Internet of Things (IoT) in the healthcare market was estimated to be worth $180.5 billion in 2021, and Precedence Research predicts that it will grow to be worth $960.2 billion by 2030, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20.41% from 2022 to 2030.
Health IT developments include the use of trackers and wearable technology. Their main advantage is that they provide clinicians with accurate, real-time information about patients’ health conditions.
IoMT makes it possible for a significant change in patient consciousness. People who use trackers can access real-time information about their daily activities and may suggest modifications along the way. The gadget may reward patients and boost their incentive to live a better lifestyle if it has specific gamification elements. Because of this, technology has a significant influence, enhancing a reasonable drive to maintain good behavior with sheer enjoyment.
Doctors may now more actively engage in their patients’ care and get alerts immediately. This cutting-edge healthcare technology generates vast amounts of data, including information on typical activity levels, eating patterns, and sleep patterns. With this knowledge, medical professionals may develop more realistic coaching programs and precisely monitor the course of therapy.
Wearable Technology and Chronic Disease
When treating diseases that require considerable lifestyle changes, IoMT technologies shine. For instance, they include type 2 diabetes, obesity, and disorders of excessive worry.
According to the most recently data, there are 422 million diabetics worldwide. Unfortunately, physicians could not trust the patient’s statements and pledges since therapy for type 2 diabetes had been on their minds for a long time. Healthcare practitioners lacked the tools to manage the progression since success primarily depends on dietary and lifestyle modifications.
This issue has been resolved by adding wearables and encouraging physicians to work with their patients to develop better lives. It helps set the foundation for informing patients about the phases and milestones of their therapy, or the “Patient First Approach.” The market for customized medicines was estimated to be worth $514.33 billion globally in 2021 and is anticipated to increase at a CAGR of 6.95% from 2023 to 2030.
These markers for type 2 diabetes include the maximum sugar intake and the recommended quantity of daily exercise. Additionally, the gadget may save any required normal human insulin (RHI). As a consequence, the therapy is now simpler to use and more effective.
Wearable technology and PGHD are particularly well suited to treating these disorders because people with them require more ongoing support and self-reflection to succeed than infrequent office visits can provide.
2. Data privacy and cybersecurity
Cybersecurity will continue to be a prominent trend in the health IT business for a very long time. Data security is still a major industrial issue. Future technological advancements will all adhere to the need for a strong security layer. The protection of confidential patient information given online is the ultimate aim.
By the end of 2021, there were an average of 626 assaults against healthcare organizations per week, which is still rising. In 2021, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation reported that over 40 million patient health records had been exposed due to the vulnerability of 50% of internet-connected hospital equipment.
IoMT device connection, network threat detection, and powerful AI models to avoid the need to exchange patient data while studying it are some examples of contemporary cybersecurity solutions. You may apply these really useful suggestions to defend against cyberattacks.
Still, cybersecurity is a popular subject, given the prevalence and dangers of data breaches. For instance, the top article today is about cybersecurity for hospitals. The situation will only get worse as information exchange and interoperability expand. Given the current situation, the healthcare sector will aggressively look for software in the next few years that is really secure, dependable, and adheres to patient safety regulations.
Platforms for video conferences that comply with HIPAA
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) has been a prerequisite for video conferencing since the epidemic. Companies are required by this federal statute “to protect the privacy and security of individuals’ medical records and other protected health information (PHI).”
The majority of telemedicine video conferencing systems adhere to this principle. The use cases include several calling software equivalents, such as VSee, Citrix GoToMeeting, Zoom for Healthcare, and Skype for Business. Future communication platforms will advance the sector by offering security beyond the end-to-end encryption used to keep patient data in cloud storage but still exposes it to danger. Signal, DuckDuckGo, and Tauria are already examples of such recent substitutes.
You may also check out our specially created, HIPAA-compliant video conferencing software, which has improved cybersecurity safeguards.
3. Remotely monitoring patients (RPM)
RPM has a unique position among the most recent developments in medical technology. COVID-19 also played a part in making remote patient monitoring a popular practice in the medical industry today. Online appointments, remote treatment, and video conferencing are just a few ways virtual healthcare is becoming more prevalent. RPM has even more options because of the variety of IoMT devices.
By 2027, the worldwide RPM systems market is expected to be valued at approximately $175.2 billion, up from $53.6 billion in 2022, according to Research and Markets.
Hand-free communication is one of the most significant long-term developments in healthcare technology related to revenue cycle management. That’s because RPM helps healthcare businesses of all sizes save time and money. When dealing with personal protection equipment during the epidemic, it excelled. When RPM is achieved in the future, it will be possible to give the appropriate service appearance for various patient groups by combining hands-free and on-site treatments.
RPM substantially contributes to health equality, which refers to widespread access to healthcare services regardless of location, society, economy, or political system. It represents a significant advancement for mankind and shows how technology may improve the world.
Focus on the Care of Mental Illness
Global concerns about mental health have significantly increased due to the COVID-19 epidemic. Nearly 1 billion people worldwide suffer from a mental condition; in low-income nations, more than 75% of those individuals go untreated. Additionally, each year, over 700,000 individuals commit suicide, and around 50% of mental health illnesses begin before the age of 14.
The improvements made to RPM have been quite helpful in solving these issues. Patients may get excellent psychotherapy without endangering their physical health because of telemedicine.
Since February 2020, the usage of telemedicine has increased 38 times more than ever, according to McKinsey & Company, and it has since stabilized. Additionally, mental health treatment is the main focus of remote visits. Thus, this most recent medical technology will be among the most important in the healthcare industry in 2023.
Additionally, the technology provided access to the most vulnerable individuals, such as those with comorbid conditions, chronic diseases, and other mental illnesses. Before now, they could not receive healthcare because of a lack of means, their humiliation at seeking help in front of others, and racial injustice. Today, however, they only need an Internet connection to start a communication platform.
According to Deloitte Global, With a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15.7%, the worldwide market for mental health apps climbed from $5.49 billion in 2022 to $6.36 billion in 2023. Check out our advice on creating a secure, bespoke mHealth app to set up a communication app for private conversations with your patients.
4. Enhanced Analytics and Big Data
By 2025, the sector may save at least $150 million using AI technology in healthcare data analytics, predicts Frost & Sullivan. Analyzing and measuring patient data in real time and across large distances made such an accomplishment feasible. The AI movement will pick up steam in the next several years, given its astounding cost-effectiveness.
The COVID-19 pandemic brought data analytics to the attention of healthcare professionals and academics and the enormous difficulty of making decisions in real-time under rapidly changing circumstances. If handled manually, healthcare practitioners can get lost in hundreds of spreadsheets and meetings. Because of this, the digital future will unavoidably incorporate technology that can analyze Big Data in place of people and provide decision-makers access to real-time analytics.
Analytics’ capacity for prediction-making is another strength. In this situation, predictive analytics and business intelligence improvements make it possible to use data-driven insights from prior patient contacts with healthcare organizations and make the necessary modifications. It benefits both parties. Patients get quick care and precise treatment regimens. As a result, healthcare providers benefit from optimized staffing and improved supply chain management.
The COVID-19 Pandemic and Predictive Analytics’ Potential
Predictive analytics’ full potential is now being shown due to the epidemic. Initiatives like the University of Chicago Medicine were created in response to the need to monitor and address community health concerns, enhance patient outcomes, and work with public health organizations. With the help of unique dashboards for data visualization, they provide new ways to utilize data.
In times of uncertainty, the system may identify medicine and equipment shortages and alert medical workers to the issue. It also helps monitor patient demographics, digital healthcare trends, and ventilator and ICU demands. Predictive analytics incorporates outside data into the study, such as weather conditions. The program acts as an essential crisis management optimization system and is GPS-enabled.
5. Migration to the Cloud
The move to the cloud in healthcare is already well underway and is expected to increase significantly in the coming years. According to MarketsandMarkets, worldwide healthcare cloud computing is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 17.8% from an estimated $39.4 billion in 2022 to $89.4 billion by 2027.
It resolves several significant issues with service delivery, like record management, remote treatment, and reaching patients with limited financial resources. Globally, providers utilize the cloud to effectively handle emails and electronic medical records (EMRs) and provide healthcare professionals with real-time data.
Customer engagement may increase, and problem-solving processes can be streamlined by moving legacy contact center operations from outdated technology stacks to the cloud. Traditional health systems frequently restrict an organization’s ability to offer high-quality, affordable care and retain employees. By moving operations to the cloud, businesses can build omnichannel contact centers with conversational AI and automation, linked ecosystems, and security and compliance features that improve customer experiences.
According to HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) survey analysts, cloud technologies have expanded health care organizations’ communications infrastructure. As more apps are migrated to the cloud, connectivity should be simple to “scale up.”
6. Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
This is one of the current healthcare technology trends that is gaining ground quickly. By 2035, the World Health Organization (WHO) projected that there would be 12.9 million fewer healthcare workers worldwide, making in-person doctor visits a luxury few individuals could afford. Additionally, the COVID-19 outbreak has only made matters worse. Robotic process automation (RPA) systems may resolve medical system inefficiencies.
Bots with RPA capabilities represent a major advance in healthcare IT. With this knowledge, health practitioners may automate precisely, save costs, optimize personnel, and even implement dramatic changes. On the patient’s side, AI algorithms may help individuals find the right doctor by more precisely identifying their symptoms than conventional search engines.
RPA is a technical advancement that has essentially given the healthcare industry robots that imitate human behaviour. They can do several things, including detecting screenwriting, data input, and the execution of predefined actions. Healthcare organizations use RPA extensively for hospital administration, appointment scheduling, information management, claims management, and optimal care delivery.
Online scheduling immediately
RPA makes possible all the magic involved in making appointments in hospitals quickly and precisely. Under the hood, the technology finds the patient’s pertinent personal information, compares the symptoms to the diagnosis, and retrieves the insurance information. It automatically looks for open times in the schedules of all the hospitals nearby.
Your doctor gets a notice about your appointment with all the pertinent information attached on the day you choose. The system will inform you if an issue arises and suggest you see another doctor. And everything is completed with only a few clicks.
7. Cognitive Automation (CA)
Among the emerging trends in healthcare technology, CA is worth highlighting. Cognitive Automation is the next-level tendency for true digital transformation. These days, it’s among the emerging IT market trends in healthcare, but the technology package and applicability are about to change the state of managing an industry to the core. It takes the achievements of RPA but applies the mimicking of human behavior beyond the repetitive tasks. In short, it serves as the digital brain of the healthcare organization.
In essence, CA takes the automation capabilities of current software providers and applies ML algorithms to introduce decision velocity in the industry. Processing zettabytes of data within seconds and providing decision-makers with ready-to-accept recommendations backed up by real-time data becomes possible. The ultimate goal is to establish a self-driving enterprise where all the operational processes are automated.
These days, not every healthcare payer can afford such technology. But the prospects of providing a unified operating system and increasing the speed and accuracy of decisions are worth investing in. CA will become more common and open to numerous healthcare industry representatives within a couple of years.
Cognitive Automation Adoption in Merck Healthcare
Merck Healthcare uses the latest medical technology from Aera Technology as a central part of digitizing and modernizing its legacy systems. In particular, the company managed to unite several ERP and manufacturing execution software types and a separate system for supply chain planning under a single solution.
The technology adopts ML algorithms to create more accurate forecasts, considering numerous internal and external factors. Moreover, CA adoption in Merck Healthcare improved cost savings, processes, and security measures. Nevertheless, the novelty of technology causes problems with trust at the moment.
8. Integration of FinTech
By 2027, healthcare expenditures are anticipated to total $6 trillion. The healthcare system used to be an antiquated bureaucratic structure until recently. But technology is starting to deliver as hospitals and other healthcare organizations look to the IT sector to streamline their billing and filing procedures.
Insurance, management services, digital payments, settlement services, capital-raising, deposits, and credit services are all covered by financial technology. Thus, it lowers the cost of financial services while streamlining and facilitating healthcare operations. Fintech supports the healthcare industry by reducing inefficiencies in its payment plans using P2P lending, mobile payments, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and blockchain technology.
Furthermore, FinTech innovations may make it easier for those with low to moderate incomes to access and afford healthcare services by reducing income disparity and financial exclusion.
We’ve already seen many effective examples, including PayZen, which establishes a payment schedule and an automated mechanism to assist hospitals in billing more quickly by figuring out a person’s healthcare costs and capacity to pay after insurance. Or Nomi Health, a healthcare company that claims to be able to save money for everyone by providing companies with a payment platform that links them directly to healthcare providers.
Which IT trends in healthcare are no longer relevant?
Some healthcare technology trends from 10 years ago still hold today. However, some solutions went from being “nice-to-haves” to becoming “must-haves.” For instance, EHR system integration is now necessary rather than the newest trend for 2023. Therefore, if you haven’t already, now is the ideal moment to consider it, especially with the guidance and expertise of an IT consulting company.
Recently, several tendencies have been reexamined. For instance, although previous cloud migrations raised data security concerns, they are now a workable alternative for the healthcare industry.
There aren’t many obvious anti-trends in healthcare nowadays. Instead, the technologies that were on the horizon ten years ago—Big Data, cloud computing, interoperability and connectivity, telemedicine, and cybersecurity—are progressing steadily.
