Technology is evolving at breakneck speeds and, as a result, transforming almost every aspect of healthcare today from the way that doctors interact with patients to the way that medical records are being stored.

In many ways we are on the verge of a new era in healthcare, one that is being largely driven by cutting-edge, Internet-enabled devices and the wealth of big data that is now available for use.

It’s important to realize, however, that we are still in the early stages of this advanced, technology-driven era of healthcare. For example, there are still many networking challenges that medical professionals and healthcare organizations must aptly address before the industry can maximize the multitude of benefits from the technologies at hand.

Specifically, three primary networking challenges that exist today, which must be efficiently overcome in order to compete and better serve patients and customers, include interoperability, telemedicine and security. Let’s explore these potential difficulties further …

System interoperability: This is currently one of the biggest barriers to the Internet of Things (IoT) growth in the medical industry. Currently, multiple IoT manufacturers are flooding the market with different types of devices that use various protocols, or programming languages. In order for medical professionals—doctors, traveling nurses, etc.—to exchange data in real-time and be of actionable use, these medical devices need to be able to speak the same language. This ability to exchange and interpret data is called system interoperability. For example, an Internet-connected pacemaker needs to be able to connect with a doctor’s smart hub and connected devices so that it can properly collect and interpret patient information in real-time.

Telemedicine: Imagine being able to visit your doctor for a checkup or consultation without having to physically travel to his or her office. This practice is called telemedicine. It’s one of the most exciting directions that healthcare is headed based on its ability to significantly save time and money for healthcare organizations, while also making it easier for ill or disabled patients to be seen and taken care of. Organizations are slowly embracing telemedicine, however, due to a number of network-related challenges. That is, if their underlying network infrastructure isn’t robust enough to handle the Internet connection, the quality of service that is provided during telemedicine sessions will suffer and, subsequently, so will patient care. At the moment, for example, only 20 percent of accountable care organizations (ACOs) are using telemedicine technology to streamline patient care, according to the 2015 ACO Survey from eHealth Initiative. According to the report, many businesses still lack the necessary technology for engaging with patients. Again, issues related to interoperability—and connectivity—appear to be holding telemedicine back, too.

Security: Hospitals and other healthcare organizations are prime targets for hackers due to the wealth of sensitive patient data that they harbor. Back in July, for example, hackers successfully broke into the massive University of California, Los Angeles hospital network and successfully accessed computers which contained up to 4.5 million patient records. Of course, there is also the threat that in addition to stealing information, hackers could also manipulate sensitive medical equipment and use it to take down healthcare networks, which could inflict a great amount of harm on patients.

So, how can your healthcare industry ensure it is prepared to address these issues and embrace the new era of technology? Focus on obtaining robust network connectivity solutions, like virtual private networks (VPN) for enhanced security, and fiber cables for lightning-fast data transfers. Now more than ever hospitals and other healthcare organizations are realizing the need for a more robust, reliable and trusted underlying network infrastructure. The costs and consequences of ignoring this need are simply too great.

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