Top digital healthcare trends in 2022

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the healthcare industry has been pushed into overdrive. New trends emerge, and the old is being replaced with the new. In 2022, healthcare trends are all about online services. For example, there are now many more online therapy companies than there used to be before the pandemic, proving the fact that E-health is on the rise. Artificial intelligence remains trending as well, as more and more health service providers utilize its benefits for their operations. But what does all of that mean for the customers? That is what this article is going to be all about. This article will explore all of the top digital healthcare trends in 2022 and show you how they correlate to the customer experience.

Top digital healthcare trends in 2022

• Artificial Intelligence
• IoMT
• Health Data Security
• Interoperability
• Fintech Integration
• Migration to Cloud Services
• Cognitive Automation

Additionally, HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) has been enforced much more strictly since the pandemic. This act brings mandatory rules to video conferencing, allowing the customers to feel safer. For example, it is much easier to find the best online therapy for teens nowadays, as every service provider must abide by the security rules. The act requires all businesses to safeguard the privacy and security of all patient’s medical records and any other protected health information.

The eHealth industry has been plagued with security concerns for quite some time now. But strict HIPAA enforcement is looking to change things for the better. All major video conferencing services (Zoom, Skype, Vsee, etc.) will follow the HIPAA requirements, establishing a new era of video conference security. But this is just a sign of things to come. There are many more digital healthcare trends that you need to look out for. Let’s explore the first one!

Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is not a new concept. Healthcare systems have been utilizing AI for several years now, which was one of the most common top digital healthcare trends. But 2022 brings with it rapid advancement of AI technology for medical purposes. The uses for AI in medicine are numerous but mostly about task automation. This means that doctors and other medical professionals will be capable of concentrating on more important tasks while AI does the “menial” work. That is oversimplifying things, of course, but it is true nonetheless.

Regarding online therapy services, therapists can incorporate AI solutions to accelerate their analysis, allowing them to treat more patients in the same amount of time. What this means to the customer is that the availability of online CBT therapy, for example, will be higher. Additionally, the therapists will have an easier time managing multiple patients, improving the overall quality of the treatment.

Artificial intelligence also has uses in triage, orientation, and diagnostic assistance. And it can even assist with some surgeries. However, this medical technology is still being actively developed and is predicted to reach maturity by the end of 2030.

IoMT (Internet of Medical Things)

Healthcare information technology is making leaps and bounds regarding wearables and trackers. These devices provide doctors with real-time information about the condition of their patients. But more importantly, the IoT (Internet of Things) is rapidly being adapted to the medical sector. For example, with IoMT, patients have access to devices that allow for gamification, meaning they might be more motivated to live healthier. While health should be its reward, the truth of things is that people respond amazingly well to “over the top” visual stimuli and rewards.

But that is not the only thing IoMT brings to the proverbial table. With IoMT, doctors can receive notifications instantly, allowing them to respond faster. For example, let’s say that the patient is undergoing online therapy for OCD. Traditionally, the patient is on their own before their session. But with the Internet of Medical Things, the patient can wear a device that transmits their sleep patterns, average activity level, and many other factors, directly to the therapist. This, in turn, allows the therapist to respond swiftly, even outside the course of a regular session.

Lastly, IoMT will allow healthcare providers to quickly analyze the data received from the patient’s devices. Coupled with Artificial Intelligence, chances are that we will see better and more realistic treatment programs within a short timeframe.

Health Data Security

We already mentioned that health data security is a significant concern regarding eHealth. That is why one of the top digital healthcare trends is to improve cybersecurity on all levels. Most people are satisfied with eHealth’s level of service, but they remain reluctant due to safety concerns. Therefore, the medical industry is doing all it can to heighten the security of its systems. For example, eHealth providers must host any health data on servers with a health data compliance certification. This certification ensures end-to-end encryption, providing a much greater level of security.

Additionally, online medical service providers must implement other security practices. In the future, you can expect that no providers will be able to “slack” on their security protocols to the benefit of patients around the world. While online vs. in-person therapy might be a hot debate these days, we believe that online is going to come ahead as the years go by. People who do not have to worry about security breaches will be much more amenable to signing up for online health services. The security issues will remain for a while, though. But the industry has “caught up” with them. It is only a matter of time before patients will have nothing to worry about when it comes to data confidentiality and data privacy.

Interoperability of Healthcare Systems

In 2022, there are so many different software applications that doctors and therapists will use. So many, in fact, the time it takes to master all those tools is impossible. That is why one of the top digital healthcare trends, interoperability of healthcare systems, is looking to change all that. It will be a difficult road, and we are confident that interoperability will remain a concern for quite some time in the future, but the fact that the industry is taking steps to correct it is a good sign.

Once interoperability of healthcare systems between digital solutions and different providers is established, patients can finally benefit from the full extent of what technology can bring. Not only that, but the therapy costs will also be lower if the training time is considerably shortened. There is no doubt that therapy is expensive, and anything that can reduce the price is a great plus in anyone’s book. By achieving greater interoperability, medical services may become cheaper, more efficient, and better serve the patient’s needs.

Fintech Integration

Here’s one of the top digital healthcare trends with almost nothing to do with medicine. Nonetheless, it is a significant trend to reduce medical services costs significantly. If you don’t know what Fintech is, it is the use of software and other technology to support financial services and enable banking options. Unfortunately, the medical industry is perhaps one of the oldest industries in the world, meaning that its structure is quite aged by now. Not to mention overly bureaucratic.

Currently, most hospitals have severe issues with their paperwork and billing processes. Fintech integration aims to fix this issue by providing several advantages. First, it enables digital payments for health services. This, on its own, is worth more than you may think. But that is just the start of it. Fintech also allows for insurance management, settlement services, credit services, and more. But the main advantage of Fintech integration is that it simplifies and streamlines all financial operations and lowers costs. Traditionally, medical institutions needed to pay hefty financial advice fees, which were all included in the patient’s bill.

With Fintech, healthcare providers can access robotic investment advising, mobile payments, machine learning, blockchain technologies, and much more. These solutions can minimize financial exclusion, allowing more people access to quality medical care. In addition, by spending less time having panic attacks about economic issues, healthcare providers will have more time to help patients deal with their panic attacks. And that is always a good thing. We expect big things to happen after Fintech integration has been completed globally.

Migration to Cloud Services

Another trend that has been going strong for several years now. Migration to cloud services provides the answer to numerous problems that have been plaguing the medical industry for quite some time currently. Record-keeping, for example, is much easier if all the data is on the cloud. Furthermore, remote treatment is much easier with cloud services, reaching low-income patients. Some medical institutions have also moved their call center operations to the cloud.

Migration to cloud services allows health service providers to benefit from conversational AI software and automation and offers an integrated ecosystem. All these things combined significantly improve customer experience by providing cost-effective solutions that are highly efficient at the same time. All that said, the transition is going slowly. The main issue is that migrating to cloud services requires adapting to something new. That, and many medical applications, are highly complex and not easily integrated with cloud services.

But with all the benefits cloud services offer, we believe that a complete transition is closer than ever. Cloud migration will most likely not happen within the next few years. But as more and more health service providers make the transition and reap the benefits, it will speed up as time passes.

Cognitive Automation

Cognitive automation is the last, but definitely not the least, of our top digital healthcare trends in 2022. CA is one of the most talked about concepts in the medical industry these days. What it does is allows the computer software to simulate human behavior. CA does this by applying machine learning algorithms and being able to process vast amounts of data within seconds. While standard automation was already capable of handling repetitive tasks, CA allows for much more complex automation. The technology builds on the foundation created by RPA (Robotic Process Automation), which was used to automate on the macro level, and works alongside it.

Beneficial to all

CA brings numerous benefits to just about everyone. It allows the patients to pay less for their health services (as some are now being automated) and allows the providers to utilize their staff in much more meaningful ways. When done perfectly, CA will function as a digital brain. While we are still far from that, the level of automation that CA is capable of is already quite impressive.

And the technology is still far from achieving its full potential. Nevertheless, we predict this trend will remain vital for quite some time, easily within the next five years. So allowing medical professionals to focus on helping people rather than mindlessly entering data into a spreadsheet will never be “out of fashion.” That, on its own, would not be enough, unfortunately. Still, the fact is that automation brings enormous profits to businesses, meaning that they have a vested interest in helping develop it.

These were all the top digital healthcare trends in 2022. But if you want to learn even more about all the new stuff that is going on in the industry, make sure to explore the rest of the Consumer Opinion Guide. Our expert staff is there to provide you with pertinent, up-to-date information!