Introducing new technology into a hospital environment can be a complex undertaking, requiring careful planning and focused implementation. This year at HIMSS 2019, I spoke to experts in the digital health field about what organizations can do to improve the adoption rate of new technology after the initial rollout. One recurring theme I discovered is that when it comes to digital transformation in healthcare, people are just as important — if not more so — in enabling adoption as the technology itself.
“Trial and error is a really important part of the process,” said digital health influencer Evan Kirstel. Healthcare organizations should introduce proofs of concept with thorough education, training and enablement to allow technology to be consumed and adopted by patients and caregivers alike, Kirstel recommends.
Martha Lawrence, CEO of AccendoWave, believes that hospitals need to focus on internal processes so they align with strategic initiatives. In doing so, these facilities can bring significantly more innovation to patient care.
Sarika Phatak, senior director of the healthcare vertical at HARMAN, shared similar sentiments. For Phatak, if the team leading the digital health transformation fully understands existing workflows and personnel operations, they can then seamlessly integrate the new technology into current operations and make life simpler.
“Hospitals can improve [the] adoption rate of new technology by focusing on the outcomes,” said Dr. William O’Connor, chief medical information officer at TigerConnect. “I think really focusing on the clinicians in particular and making them understand how the technology is going to benefit both them [and] the patients is really important to do.”
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