CIO survey reveals healthcare is lacking in THIS aspect of business

Although the healthcare field has been ahead of embracing the mobile health industry for some time now, the industry as a whole still fails to improve one key aspect: leveraging mobile to better engage customers and/or patients.

Recently, a survey of 2,300 chief information officers at various U.S. companies was released, and the results were less then positive in terms of how companies are working to better engage their customers. Over 70 percent of CIOs reported that they had some kind of mobile strategy for interacting with customers, but most of those came in at 56 percent, saying that they have both native apps and mobile-friendly websites.

The survey was conducted by Robert Half Technology, and the findings went on to demonstrates that a percentage of CIOs at healthcare companies had no mobile strategy at all, compared to others from various disciplines. A total of 36 percent of CIOS at healthcare companies reported having no strategy at all, where 60 percent of CIOs from business and retail companies said they employ both apps and mobile-friendly websites in their business ventures.

“To maintain competitive advantage, sectors such as business services and retail need to connect with customers anytime, anywhere, so it’s logical to see them leading the charge in implementing mobile strategies,” John Reed, Senior Executive Director, Robert Half Technology said in a statement. “Compliance issues have made it difficult for the healthcare industry to move as quickly as other sectors, but as consumer demand for mobile health information grows, formal mobile strategies are a necessary next step.”

Last year, a different study was conducted to measure 100 healthcare CIOS and other health IT professionals to evaluate provider settings. The study found that 17 percent believed that mobile health would have a more significant impact on healthcare than either integrated healthcare facilities or the inclusion of EHR technology.

So, what do all these numbers mean in the short-term and long-term goals? Healthcare companies need to spend equal time investing in mobile health initiatives, and employing better means of accessibility to these heavily-invested in ideas. Without access to these create healthcare apps, how will the public benefit from them?