What you should know:
– Digital transformation strategy has accelerated as a core priority for the healthcare industry, driven by the need for operational resilience, personalization and advanced artificial intelligence.
– According to the fifth annual report Survey on Digital Transformation of the Health System by chartis91% of health system executives agree their organizations must undergo “fundamental change” to overcome persistent challenges and thrive over the next five years.
Incremental change limit is reached
Health systems have long relied on incremental improvements to address chronic problems, but executives now recognize that this approach has reached its limit. The challenges, including 61% reporting care is unaffordable and ~50% reporting patients lack timely access, will only worsen without significant structural transformation.
Executives are looking for proactive models to deliver care that is more accessible, reduces costs, and provides smart, patient-centered services. This paradigm shift depends entirely on leveraging new and advanced digital and artificial intelligence tools.
As report co-author Tom Kiesau, Chief AI and Digital Officer at Chartis, notes: “We may finally be at an inflection point if 90% of healthcare executives agree on the need for fundamental change. Organizations must capitalize on the momentum right now and ensure they are truly harnessing the potential that AI and digital capabilities present to drive the business transformation needed at scale.”
The four pillars of proactive transformation
Executives appear cautiously optimistic that they can systematically transform the reactive care delivery model using artificial intelligence and digital enablement. Its objective is to achieve this change through four priority areas over the next five years:
- Transforming access: (89% prioritize digital/AI) Enable timely, convenient and affordable care.
- Personalization of the patient journey: (86% prioritize digital/AI) Engage and guide patients through clear care plans.
- Adaptation of resources to demand: (77% prioritize digital/AI) Accurately project demand and meet those needs efficiently, particularly through hospital-at-home models.
- Serving more patients: (75% prioritize digital/AI) Grow capacity through automated, digitally enabled care models that do not require additional clinical staff or facility square footage.
Executives believe that by investing in advanced digital and AI tools, they can create a dynamic operating model that is faster, less capital intensive, and able to proactively address upstream care issues.
Digital maturity defines competitive advantage
The survey reveals that the key attributes that define leading health systems are moving away from traditional metrics:
- Size has no priority: Most executives agree that the size of a health system will be less of a differentiating factor in the future. Size alone will not insulate organizations from the industry’s many challenges.
- Digital Differentiators Win: The two biggest differentiators for leading health systems in five years will be a digital-first consumer experience and digitally enabled care. This levels the playing field, offering smaller health systems the opportunity to differentiate themselves through strategy.
Imperatives for strategic execution
The way forward requires business transformation, not just process digitalization. Chartis advises leaders:
- Prioritize proactive investments: Align digital investments with redesign opportunities in the four main domains, focusing on transformation, not just increasing efficiency in specific processes.
- Avoid Pilot Purgatory: Executives must establish discipline and a clear commitment to move beyond the pilot phase. Success requires establishing specific metrics for value creation, designing implementations at scale, and integrating technology into existing strategic initiatives.
- Incorporate adaptability: Health systems must become dynamic learning organizations, applying lessons from successful and unsuccessful implementations in future iterations.
