A new survey found health system leaders believe cybersecurity, telehealth and interoperability will be key issues in the 2019 health IT landscape.
The poll was released by the Center for Connected Medicine (which is jointly operated by GE Healthcare, Nokia and UPMC) in partnership with The Health Management Academy, a membership organization for healthcare executives. Overall, the report includes responses from 44 executives representing 38 health systems.
Behavioral Health, Interoperability and eConsent: Meeting the Demands of CMS Final Rule Compliance
In a webinar on April 16 at 1pm ET, Aneesh Chopra will moderate a discussion with executives from DocuSign, Velatura, and behavioral health providers on eConsent, health information exchange and compliance with the CMS Final Rule on interoperability.
When it comes to cybersecurity, only 20 percent of executives said they are “very confident” in their organization’s IT recovery plans. On top of that, 87 percent of respondents said they anticipate increasing spending on cybersecurity in 2019. None of the leaders expect to decrease spending.
In a recent phone interview, UPMC chief innovation officer Rasu Shrestha likened keeping on top of cybersecurity to a game of cat and mouse. It’s key, he said, to use strategies like machine learning and pattern recognition to not just be reactive but also more predictive regarding where breaches could happen.
Regarding telehealth, reimbursement remains a barrier to adoption. In fact, 70 percent of executives cited a lack of reimbursement as a roadblock to greater implementation. In 2019, health systems anticipate internal funding and patient co-pays/out-of-pocket payments to provide the most funding for telehealth services. But by 2022, they expect government and commercial reimbursement to provide the majority of funding for telemedicine.
“I call [telehealth] the overnight success story that was 30 years in the making,” Shrestha said. “Now that reimbursement is catching up, people are really interested in this.”
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
The survey took a closer look at interoperability and data exchange as well. Respondents noted that they’re unable to adequately address issues like cost reduction, advanced analytics, reducing clinician burnout and patient-facing apps due to a lack of interoperability.
While the healthcare world has embraced the idea of digital features, it’s not enough. “What we’ve ended up with is silos of information systems that aren’t talking to each other,” Shrestha said. It’s an issue that the industry must continue to focus on.
As the medical world struggles with exchanging information, well-known tech companies are entering the space aiming to offer a better consumer experience. In the survey, the majority of respondents — 70 percent — said they are “somewhat concerned” about entities like Apple, Amazon and Google entering the healthcare space. Ten percent indicated they’re “very concerned” and 17 percent are “not worried at all.”
“At UPMC, in many ways, our strategy is … how do we disrupt ourselves before these outside companies come in and disrupt us?” Shrestha concluded.
Photo: MicroStockHub, Getty Images
