Alignment of technology with a business’s culture, pace and appetite for change is critical.
Post-transformation companies will continue to evolve with automation across technologies.
Trends affecting digital include cybersecurity, privacy concerns and a shortage of skilled labor.
A digital strategy road map should identify specific business goals and how best to reach them.
RSM’s second annual Virtual Health Care Day closed with an informative and lively panel discussion on digital transformation in the health care space.
Mike Mosquito, director at RSM US LLP, moderated the panel discussion. Panelists included Phil Martino, RSM principal and health care and technology practice leader; Kari Toft, former chief information officer at HealthPartners; John Bennett, health care industry leader; and Chris Paravate, chief information officer at Northeast Georgia Health System.
Discussion focused on understanding how health care organizations are approaching digital transformation, identifying and analyzing the five megatrends in health care transformation and how organizations are responding to them, and helping organizations plan for the digital journey. Following are key insights from the panel.
How health care organizations are approaching digital transformation today
In a competitive marketplace, CIOs need to make informed decisions that can flex with the many variables affecting their business. Aligning solutions and technology with strategic business goals can help prepare organizations for the future. The best practice is for a cross-functional team to establish governance and a detailed plan aligned to the organization’s goals and pace.
“The goal is to have employees look at innovation and technology as a solution versus something that is being done to them,” said Chris Paravate. “Prioritization and resource management is a never-ending pursuit. Technology is table stakes—it’s the alignment with the business that is a differentiator.”
Kari Toft added, “You can’t shove transformation at the business. Employees need to understand why IT wants to make a change in order to be willing to adapt to it.”
Maintaining momentum after transformation “Digital transformation during COVID was incredible, but how do we keep innovating?” John Bennett posed this question, adding, “Patient experience and expectations have completely changed, and automation is everything.”
“The labor market is tight and isn’t going to loosen up, so automation is key,” said Phil Martino. “There is a tremendous opportunity to automate at the beginning of the revenue cycle with things like prior authorization and electronic patient communications.”
Companies are focusing on the following key areas in their continued digital transformation:
- Customer engagement: using technology to create highly engaging experiences
- Business operations: leveraging processes and technologies to create agile operations
- People enablement: providing teams with the processes and tools to increase their contributions
- Data and integration: gathering and analyzing data to improve decision-making
- Technology stabilization: building foundational capabilities to enable business functions
Megatrends affecting digital transformation
Five trends are affecting health care companies as they transform and evolve in the digital space:
- Cybersecurity and privacy: risk mitigation, crisis planning and compliance with privacy laws
- Digital evolution: customer-focused technology, automation and data-driven decision-making
- Business growth: access to financing and private equity, scalability
- Skilled labor: recruiting, developing, retaining and empowering talent
- Business model transformation: client-centricity, succession planning, and remote or hybrid work
On prioritizing and tackling the different trends, Paravate said, “The No. 1 reason for me to migrate to the cloud is to address cybersecurity. I’ll never be as good as the big players in that space. My time and energy is much better spent helping the organization leverage other tools.”
Panelists also commented that middle market health care companies need to get more creative and flexible with staffing. Recommendations included paying for training and advanced degrees, offering new opportunities for growth from within, and focusing on building a strong team culture.
Planning for the digital journey ahead
Building a digital strategy road map identifies your business priorities and determines how best to get there. Based on priorities, companies may be at different points in their journey for different business strategies, ranging from the beginning of the journey where they view technologies as operating costs, to digitizing for process efficiencies, and finally adopting digital as a strategic advantage.
Organizations that commit to and achieve digital transformation will see many benefits, including:
- Increased profitability
- Optimized processes
- Higher customer satisfaction
- Better visibility into resource utilization
- Increased value contribution from employees
- More accurate, data-driven decisions
- Reduced administrative burden
Virtual Health Care Day 2022
Resources and on-demand sessions
Did you miss our live RSM Virtual Health Care Day event? No worries. We have everything here captured from the day and more.
Subscribe to Health Care Leader Insights
Actionable insights to help health care industry leaders successfully navigate challenges and take advantage of opportunity.
