How healthcare can catch up on innovation: AHA

How healthcare can catch up on innovation: AHA unknown

Innovation is an "imperative" for hospitals and health systems in these times of rising consumer expectations and competition from disruptors such as Amazon and Google, the American Hospital Association said.

"Regardless of the complexities inherent in healthcare, consumers and businesses expect to interact with the sector in more bespoke and digital ways, as they do with airlines, financial institutions and other modern enterprises," the June 20 report from the AHA and Concord Health Partners said. "Healthcare is now focused on catching up."

To respond, hospitals and health systems with an adequate skill base might appoint chief innovation officers and innovation teams, build their own tech solutions, or start venture capital arms, the AHA wrote. However, there are challenges to each approach — "For instance, some early adopters of electronic health records failed to benefit financially by not seeking equity in the high-growth companies that developed the technology," the report said — so organizations will have to do what works best for them.