Top 10 Healthcare Trends Facing Execs In 2013

The report highlights the top 10 hospital technology issues for c-suite leaders to watch for during the year ahead.

The list includes:

1. Electronic health records
2. Mobile health devices
3. Alarm integration technology
4. Minimally invasive cardiac surgery
5. Imaging and surgery
6. PET/MR
7. Bariatric surgery
8. Supply chain
9. Radiation dosage
10. Lung cancer screenings

With particular regard to EHRs, the report suggests that there are still a lot of concerns regarding ways in which to “quantitatively determine” how things like adverse drug events and medication errors are being minimized.

“It's widely agreed upon that work-arounds are most often put in place if a system is considered too intrusive, or if workflow changes are required,” reads the report. “Has HIT, while addressing performance issues, introduced new opportunities for errors?”

ECRI Director Of Applied Solutions Robert Maliff, in an announcement accompanying the report, adds that hospital leaders should make a point to ask if newer technologies or procedures actually improve care, a big concern with regard to mobile health technologies, according to the report's authors.

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Meanwhile, regarding combination PET/MR scans, the report warns hospital executives to “not minimize” necessary renovations that will be needed prior to even starting installation. “Not many facilities have an open space with the appropriate shielding requirements for both radiofrequency/magnetic fields and radiation. Existing PET spaces are typically unable to physically support the weight of the MRI magnet, whereas existing MRI spaces typically lack the additional support spaces needed for PET studies.”

In ECRI's PSO deep dive, the authors point out that while health IT's promise for improving patient safety and care quality is significant, the risks of jeopardizing patient safety and care can be just as significant. “As healthcare facilities respond to government incentives to adopt health IT, they must also keep their attention focused on how systems affect safety to ensure that the benefits of health IT can be realized.”

To read the full report click here