According to a report
by Global Market Insights Inc., the US healthcare cloud computing market is set to hit $55 billion by 2025. Medical device manufacturers who embrace cloud computing are poised to reap big rewards in the form of increased profits, improved efficiencies, and decreased costs.
However, connectivity for the sake of connectivity won’t add value. Medtech leaders should look to leverage connectivity and digital technologies to activate data at the point-of-care, across the continuum of care and at the enterprise level, which requires eliminating data silos.
As you look to thrive in Medtech 3.0, we outlined three key strategies to ensure success:
1. Remote Device Support and Over-the-Air (OTA) Updates Drive Significant Cost Savings
Remote access to enable upgrades, maintenance and surveillance are examples of the practical, cost-saving and efficient deployment of digital health technology.
- Leveraging standardized and scalable technology stacks allows manufacturers to break down the silos within their product portfolios. This will improve the end user experience for physicians, patients, care givers and payers.
- Gathering real-time operational data (such as motor currents or sensor data) can help identify maintenance issues early to enable proactive service visits.
- Rolling out packaged updates to a fleet of installed units can dramatically increase efficiency and reduce costs.
- Predicting device end-of-life and proactively upgrading can reduce operational and patient safety issues.
- The need for remote access to devices for support and updates is underscored by the COVID-19 pandemic. Going forward, it will be important to have remote access as being onsite at hospitals and health systems may continue to be logistically challenging.
2. When it Comes to Privacy and Security Compliance Don’t Cut Corners
With regulatory bodies globally continuing to expand and revise regulations, and ever-increasing security threats, it’s important to make security and privacy a priority. Regulatory bodies including the FDA are now more calibrated and consistent in its review of digital health solutions. Medtech should consider how security risk can potentially impact not only data privacy and security, but the potential patient safety concerns as well.
- Adequately consider and document the risk of product security to the entirety of your medical device system, especially as it intersects both data privacy and patient safety.
- Understand the complexities and security risk of your medical device supply chain, including the establishment of your Software Bill of Materials.
- Incorporate evolving standards and best practices that are leveraged by international regulatory bodies into your product development lifecycle.
- Consider architecture options that deidentify data and containerize it based on implications to Patient Health Information (PHI), Patient Identifiable Information (PII), along with command & control data.
3. Take an Integrated Ecosystem Approach
It’s no longer just about owning your space in the clinical setting, it’s necessary to take an ecosystem approach. Providers, administrators, payers, patients all have a stake—and their own interests.
- Integration into the clinical workflow is critical. Care providers only have between 13 – 16 minutes on average with a patient, and their workflow is primarily driven by the EHR.
- As we continue to move towards value-based contracts, payers will demand real-world evidence (including device data) to inform reimbursement.
- Hospital administrators will determine future investment based on device usage, so you will want to ensure that data is easily accessed and understood.
We welcome the opportunity to discuss how BrightInsight can support medtech’s high-value regulated digital health use cases, including remote patient management, remote device condition monitoring, configuration and control. Connect with us here.
