The healthcare information technology market is slated to grow 20 percent annually through 2018, according to a report from Research and Markets. Similarly, the market for mobile health devices is poised to grow at a 33 percent annual rate over the next five years, according to a study recently released by Allied Market Research.

With this growth, healthcare organizations are tasked with finding a way to fully leverage the multitude of innovative devices and apps that are rapidly infiltrating the market. Here, Drew Schiller, CTO at Validic, offers five tips that could help providers get the most out of emerging technologies:

1. Remember: It’s all about the data. Unfortunately, about 9 of 10 devices that are currently being used in patients’ homes today are not capable of generating and sharing electronic data. As such, patients are simply using blood pressure and glucose monitors to take moment-in-time readings. As such, they fail to keep a longitudinal record of their results and don’t share any information with their healthcare providers. Moving forward, healthcare organizations need to make sure that patients only use devices that enable them to collect, document and share data.

2. Zero in what matters. Once healthcare organizations start collecting information, some might find themselves dealing with data overload. As such, leaders need to figure out how to identify and use what matters. For example, it might be more useful to provide clinicians with “out-of-range” blood pressure or glucose readings, instead of overwhelming them with each and every data point. As such, clinicians get the relevant information needed to make informed patient care decisions.

3. Put your efforts in the right basket. Focusing on specific “use cases” can help providers realize the quickest return on their technology investments.  For instance, one healthcare provider recently built an app designed to help cardiac heart failure patients stay well. The app reduced readmissions for these patients by some 40 percent – which is significant as the readmissions for heart failure patients is a multi-billion problem in the United States.

4. Create a welcoming environment. While new devices and applications are being introduced to the health care industry, the challenge for healthcare organizations – and specifically for CIOs – lies in determining which of these devices to actually use. An agnostic platform that actually enables organizations to access data from any device can enable organizations to quickly leverage various innovations, as companies continue to introduce new products. For example, with such a platform in place, one provider recently helped a large number of patients who were suffering from seasonal affective disorder in the wake of a particularly long winter by quickly providing access to an app that tracks the amount of good sunlight exposure that patients are receiving.

References

1.     US Healthcare IT Market Outlook 2020. Research and Markets. Accessed at: http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/j282zs/us_healthcare_it

2.     mHealth market is Expected to Reach $58.8 Billion Globally by 2020 According to Allied Market Research Projections. Allied Market Research. https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/press-release/mhealth-market-is-exp...