Here at Perficient we do extensive work with clients around the healthcare sector, from implementing cloud solutions to improving business process management. It’s expected as hospitals begin to handle an aging population that demands greater access to care and information. You can even read some of the guides that my colleague Kate Tuttle has written around the subject, including ongoing trends for this year.
On my end, it’s all about where the cloud and healthcare intersect, especially with information, business optimization, and connected experiences. Unlike how my grandparents went to the doctor, today’s healthcare engagements require deeper relationships, data gathering, and optimization to provide for the most positive of health outcomes and at lower prices to ensure that care remains affordable.
That’s where Integration Platform as a Service comes in. Combining the capabilities of on-premise technologies with cloud solutions, healthcare providers can further optimize and increase the effectiveness of their efforts for a healthier world. We offer some salient considerations below.
Consideration #1: Dashboard Analytics
No matter what, big data analytics have become a big part of business. IDC estimates that big data adoption will grow at a 23.1% compound annual growth rate in 2016, offering immense insights into business activities unseen before. In healthcare, big data matters because professionals can take a better look into user behavior, make recommendations, and keep tabs on their patients’ progress. Combined with wearable devices in the complementary Internet of Things (IoT) sector, the potential only increases.
iPaaS technologies are relevant in this conversation because of the hybrid cloud approach. Supporting both offline data capture and online data organization, healthcare practitioners can explore data in depth in new ways while saving costs on data storage and management. Furthermore, practitioners can also leverage the APIs of various health dashboard and data management platforms to help discover and diagnose health outcomes that current methods may not uncover.
Consideration #2: Connected Experiences
In the past, we’ve written about the connected experiences we’ve built for our customers, offering a greater level of engagement around healthcare experiences. Beyond the simple social media platforms, there are additional opportunities to interact including mobile applications, custom email campaign tie-ins, and personalized offerings, all made possible through iPaaS solutions. For example:
- A young athlete carries a wearable during exercise. This data is stored locally but is also sent to a dashboard that is shared with a doctor. Combined with other data points, the young athlete’s visits to the doctor are more efficient and educational since the doctor can focus on context.
- A middle-aged adult uses a healthcare provider’s mobile application to enter in health information around food consumption. With the information in hand, the application makes suggestions on what to buy so that the patient can continue to improve their health. The doctor is also looped in so they can reach out for a conversation if needed.
Consideration #3: Optimized Costs
It’s no secret that healthcare costs have been on the rise, whether it’s the building out of infrastructure or the overall cost of care as a whole. As hospitals modernize, it’s also important for them to take into consideration the technology solutions that keep their bottom line healthy while maintaining a commitment to helping patients recover.
Leveraging iPaaS solutions is one way to provide cost relief for the following reasons:
- Important data can be placed in the cloud, lowering the potential for compromise and the costs of data breach.
- Connectivity with APIs allows healthcare practitioners to have a deeper understanding of patient needs without the headache toggling between applications.
- Cloud as a whole offers healthcare institutions the agility necessary to navigate through challenging times, while also empowering flexible use during times where there is an increased number of patients.
Your Turn
What do you think about these considerations? Do you think iPaaS has the potential to change how healthcare is managed? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Learn more about our Dell Boomi iPaaS practice by emailing us at sales@perficient.com.
