Connected health infrastructure is aiding diagnosis, monitoring and prevention in the healthcare industry. However, stakeholders must ensure that interoperability and connectivity standards are in place.
This was among the findings of a new analysis of the market released by research analyst firm Frost & Sullivan.
The study finds that the adoption of connected healthcare infrastructure is not uniform across the world, which it said is primarily due to the lack of a holistic digital healthcare strategy that focuses on integrated care models.
"More than 50% of healthcare providers do not have a healthcare IT roadmap, although they acknowledge the role of digital health in enhancing healthcare efficiency," said Frost & Sullivan Healthcare Research Analyst Shruthi Parakkal.
"Consequently, even the existing interoperability standards such as HL7, DICOM and Direct Project are not being utilized optimally by many providers,” he added.
Hospitals are also often required to update processes and workflows through expensive upgrades and reviews of codes and software. This process becomes more complicated in the absence of vendors that can guarantee connectivity between devices from various manufacturers.
"Hospitals/healthcare providers have an urgent requirement for connected devices and health IT solutions not only to manage healthcare data, but also to qualify 'Meaningful Use' requirements and be eligible for electronic health record incentives," noted Parakkal. "Therefore, manufacturers of vendor-agnostic and open medical connectivity solutions are in demand, as they facilitate the integration of devices from different original equipment manufacturers."