A recent survey on the use of mobile technology in medical situations has shown that 90% of hospitals and 94% of physicians have adopted mobile technology and say that the technological advances are helping to improve patient safety and outcomes. The survey was conducted by Black Book Research and surveyed 770 users of mobile technology based in hospitals, and a further 1,279 physician practices between Q4, 2017 and Q1, 2018.
Other results from the survey showed similar positive responses to mobile technology amongst medical professionals. It was revealed that 96% of hospitals are planning on investing in a new clinical communications platform this year, or have already recently adopted a new, comprehensive communications platform for their staff to use.
They survey revealed that 85% of hospitals and 83% of physician practices have already adopted a secure communication platform. Some 98% of hospitals and 77% of physician practices said they have implemented secure, encrypted email to protect patient data, and are using intrusion detection systems to ensure the quick detection of system breaches and can be dealt with swiftly. In addition to email, many practices are adopting secure text messaging platforms. Text messages are convenient ways of ensuring rapid communication between professionals and patients. Many platforms now offer security measures which are in line with HIPAA regulations, and are designed with the healthcare industry specifically in mind to ensure protected healthcare information (PHI) can be transmitted safely and securely.
In spite of all the position responses, the survey also showed some of the challenges associated with mobile technologies in the healthcare industry. About 63% of respondents to the survey said they are still facing ongoing challenges with buy-in of general mobile adoption strategies and related enterprise technology execution. Some 30% of those surveyed stated that even though secure methods of communication have been implemented such as encrypted text messaging platforms and secure email, they are still receiving communications on a daily basis from unsecured sources that contain personally identifiable information such as patients’ names and birthdates. This security breach could have serious implications if the data were to fall into the wrong hands, such as the parents becoming victims of identity fraud.
Part of the study involved an assessment of cybersecurity and privacy software and services, allowing the company to identify the vendors that are most highly regarded by customers. TigerText, the market leading provider of secure text messaging solutions for the healthcare industry, was rated highly across the board. Other providers, such as Vocera, Spok, Doc Halo, and Imprivata all also received praise from healthcare professionals.
Doc Halo was the highest rated secure communications platform provider among physician organizations, with Perfect Serve, Patient Safe Solutions, OnPage, Telemediq, and Voalte also scoring highly. Spok ranked highest among hospital systems and inpatient organizations, with Qlik and Cerner also receiving high marks.
Doug Brown, presiders of Black Book Market Research, made a statement when the results of the survey were released. “Stakeholders across the healthcare industry are in the quest of finding solutions to use comprehensive real-time data and connectivity cleverly to advance patient safety, productivity and profitability. Organizations are adopting secure text messaging platforms because texts are convenient, as well.”