Why Should Hospitals Digitally Transform Their Operations and Care Delivery?

Over the past 25 years, technological innovation has impacted healthcare in waves at an increasing pace. More recently, strong investments in clinical digitization have promised to improve clinical outcomes across acute departments in hospitals and in the field. AI, trained by millions of annotated radiology scans, helps doctors spot evasive tumors while the US Army is experimenting with trauma diagnosis under fire using machine learning and computer vision. Surgical robots, digestible cameras, and even patient beds have all been mediums for transformation. In the meantime, very little investment has gone into the operational side of health systems. The care delivery process remains largely disjointed and arcane, resulting in massive inefficiencies, staff fatigue, unsustainable turnover considering per-diem costs at up to $3,000 and poor patient experience. But change is on the horizon. There are three powerful forces at play that are not just altering the realities of the past but doing so with great urgency.