Technology in health care is tricky.

Experts acknowledge the incredible potential that new technology offers, but because of the sensitive nature of the field, leaders can be reluctant to implement the newest technology for fear that the learning curve or malfunctions will prove more harmful than helpful in the beginning.

Electronic health records are a great example. Everybody seems to agree, to a certain extent, that doctors can’t continue to rely on paper records forever, and that ideally records would be stored and shared electronically.

But the implementation of electronic health records has not gone smoothly everywhere, and in many cases hospitals have expressed frustration with federal policies that push them to adopt electronic health records.

Similarly, a recent survey of 136 hospital executives by Salt Lake City-based health IT company Health Catalyst found that 80 percent said they believe that predictive analytics could dramatically improve performance. And yet, less than a third of the same leaders have overseen such a system for more than a year.

Fourteen percent say they plan to adopt such technology in the next year, while another 38 percent suggested they would do it in the next three years.

About a fifth of respondents say they have no plans to ever adopt greater analytics technology, while 11 percent say they aren’t sure what they would do.

Drawing on data from electronic health records to prevent health declines among patients was the top benefit of analytics cited by the hospital executives. Many also said that analytics could also help hospitals predict the cost of treating a patient and the probability that patients will be able to pay for their care.

Recognizing the benefit of technology and putting it in place are two distinct stages of medical progress, however. The same hospital leaders who identify analytics as important note a number of challenges that make it difficult to bring in the new technology.

Roughly a third of the leaders said that the top obstacle to implementation was a lack of “appropriate data or tools and infrastructure.” The next most common challenges were a “lack of people or skills” or a lack of support from higher-ups or budget.

Instant Insights /

Hospital leaders want more use of analytics, survey says

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