Five healthcare IT trends to know for 2024

Dynamic changes in technology, from the integration of artificial intelligence to powerful portable devices and more effective treatments, are impacting the way society approaches healthcare and wellness. Healthcare organizations (HCOs) are tracking IT trends to determine which emerging technologies can best support their goals. Both the pandemic and healthcare consumerism accelerated digital transformation — giving patients a voice in how they connect with providers and payers, leading to greater use of direct-to-consumer healthcare e-commerce.

After years of burnout-inducing pandemic-level care, hospitals are facing severe staff shortages. The proliferation of digital options for patients to engage with providers and health plan workers can help alleviate labor shortage problems while maintaining high-quality care.

Healthcare providers and their IT leaders may already be aware of the following trends but should realize their increasing prominence in 2024 and beyond.

1. Internet of Things (IoT) enables more self-service tools: Patients want more control over their healthcare — more than 60% of consumers expect to be able to change or schedule healthcare appointments, check medical records and test results and renew medications online. Digital payment options have become a common expectation for patients, with 67% of consumers seeking electronic payment options, such as receiving electronic statements and paying online. Providers are responding to these expectations with self-service tools. This trend includes telemedicine and wearable devices connected to the Internet of Things (IoT). By using connected devices to remotely monitor patients and provide communication channels for healthcare professionals, more elements of care can be delivered remotely — from consultations to a holistic approach to remote patient care and treatment. Virtual hospital wards are an example of this trend in action, where a central location monitors multiple patients in their own homes.
2. Boosting efficiency and profitability with automation: Workflow automation can create more efficient processes and increase profits for medical practices. That potential is prompting many healthcare leaders (77%) to invest in enhanced portals and mobile apps. Process automation improvements can ease administrative burdens on staff and improve reporting and tracking. These efficiencies can support productivity and generate accurate data to inform decision-making that can improve patient outcomes as well as financial performance. From chatbots to generative AI, HCOs are investigating and implementing advanced automation to help them meet the evolving needs of both clinicians and patients. Automation allows HCOs to provide more efficient experiences for both clinical and patient users. Software and AI can automate many simple, yet time-consuming, tasks. These include delivering and monitoring the use of medications, tracking fluid inputs and outputs, monitoring various vital signs, and then entering that data into electronic health records in real time. Automating many repetitive, time-consuming tasks can help to ease strains in short-staffed environments. Medication management platforms can use AI robots to fill digital prescriptions, using them to confirm the right medication and dose, and can even ship medicines directly to the patient’s home.
3. Artificial intelligence (AI) democratizes access to applications: Generative AI, in particular, will make it easier for providers to interpret results and generate personalized recommendations. Providers can now use AI to create synthetic data to be used to train medical AI algorithms without compromising patient privacy, or for cases where relevant real-world data is in short supply. Further, AI can create chatbots and virtual assistants to help consumers at every stage of the patient journey, democratizing the usage of powerful applications that can drive more informed personal healthcare choices. Similar virtual assistants and chatbots can help clinicians by providing advice on treatments, diagnoses, and medications.
4. Cloud computing: Cloud computing, in which data is stored and processed using remote servers rather than those on premises, enables HCOs to collaborate and save data storage costs. The emphasis on cost-effectiveness can offer some relief to an industry facing rising prices and higher demand in the aftermath of a public health emergency, a shortage of skilled labor, and new spending needed to support additional and ongoing compliance requirements. Healthcare businesses are leading the shift to the cloud, with 81% of healthcare executives reporting that they have begun cloud transformation, compared to 78% percent of all businesses, according to PwC’s 2023 Business Cloud survey. One key benefit of the move to the cloud is that the advanced analytics tools that it enables can provide enhanced insights from HCO data, such as providing an extra set of AI-powered eyes when evaluating medical scans. The use of cloud computing in healthcare will only continue to grow as the industry more fully embraces AI — which requires huge datasets that are expensive to store and secure on-site.
   
5. Cybersecurity: Stolen health data can be used in multiple ways, from impersonating patients to obtaining costly medical services or medications to committing insurance fraud. With DDoS, phishing,  ransomware and other dangerous cyberattacks on the rise, the threat posed to healthcare organizations has never been higher. As a result, many government agencies — including the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), Office of Civil Rights (OCR), and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) — are developing updated cybersecurity guidance and laws. Solutions exist today that can help healthcare providers both comply with government regulations and harden their cybersecurity defenses.
   
   

How Spectrum Enterprise can help

Healthcare practices can streamline connectivity care challenges by collaborating with a trusted partner to manage their network. As a trusted information and communications technology provider, Spectrum Enterprise partners with HCOs to assist them in understanding and deploying strong foundations for digital transformations.