Introduction
The Australian healthcare system is recognised as one of the best in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The World Health Organization (WHO) ranks Australia’s healthcare system as 32nd most efficient in the world. However, despite offering its citizens a gamut of remarkable health services, certain inadequacies such as workforce shortages, increasing healthcare costs, aging population, etc. continue to swamp the sector, impacting the overall health outcomes of the country.
Moreover, 28% of Australia’s population, i.e., over seven million Australians reside in rural and remote areas, and thus find it difficult to access quality healthcare due to their geographic location, cultural barriers, etc. As a result, these residents experience higher rates of hospitalisations and deaths than those living in metro cities.
Added to this, the pandemic had further strained the country’s healthcare systems, where 20% of Australians experienced delayed medical care due to COVID-19. Out of this, 52% of the patients had to wait for 2-5 months, while 28% had a delay of six or more months.
Digitization is of key essence here and although digital tools and technologies have always formed the bedrock of high-quality healthcare in the country, the pandemic further accelerated their widespread adoption. Care providers are seen to be making significant investments towards digitizing health service delivery post the pandemic to combat financial pressure, burnout, and other challenges.
An Industry Overview
Australians are well utilizing the lessons from the pandemic to further enhance and build upon their technological capabilities to create robust, resilient and foolproof healthcare systems.
More than 80% of Australians are willing to share and own their health data in a digitally enabled health system.
74% of Australian healthcare workers use some form of technology to perform their day-to-day work, while only 26% state that they still rely on paper-based methods.
35% of Australian healthcare leaders are forging new partnerships to strengthen digital innovation.
(Philips 2021 Future Health Index)
47% of the country’s healthcare leaders are using automation to streamline patient processes (e.g., automating appointment booking), and 43% are using it to streamline internal processes (e.g., automating administrative tasks or improving workflows).
Patient satisfaction rate with digital alternatives has been 25% more as compared to paper.
95K
Practitioners used telehealth services.
The use of telehealth services has accelerated post the pandemic. During the period March 2020 – July 2022, more than 118 million telehealth services were delivered to 18 million patients and more than
About 3/4th
of the Australian Population
is willing to use virtual health services in the future, out of which people aged between 25-44 had the highest acceptance. (PwC).
The above findings reveal the shifting priorities of Australia’s healthcare leaders towards digitization. They also highlight the myriad opportunities to streamline and optimize the country’s healthcare operations systems
We are in the midst of a hyper-connected era, where building a connected and interoperable health system is of paramount importance. The pandemic has put the spotlight on the existing gaps in Australia’s health systems, which can be viewed as key obstacles in building a connected healthcare environment. Some of these key obstacles are listed below–
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The volume of patient data is ever-growing. However, this data is mostly siloed in multiple EHR systems, which makes it difficult for healthcare practitioners to find the right information at any given time. In an industry where even a slightest delay could put many lives at stake, having quick access to data is super vital. However, integrating all this data from varied EHRs easily, speedily and securely is currently a key challenge.
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The inability to easily share meaningful information between clinical systems.
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Management of vast patient data, which is mostly unstructured.
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Integration of new technologies and solutions with the existing healthcare legacy systems.
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Resistance of healthcare staff in adopting new technologies.
The implementation of digital health initiatives and models can drive interoperability and connectivity, thereby improving healthcare accessibility in the country. As the healthcare professionals begin to access a single point of truth for patient data, the key goals of achieving seamless communication, connectivity, efficiency and quality care would automatically be achieved.
Controlling the Rising Healthcare Costs
Healthcare costs are on a significant rise in Australia, and healthcare institutions have been grappling with mounting financial pressures. Higher inflation has been driving up the cost of delivering hospital care, threatening to smash the budgets of state-run facilities and pushing up the costs of private hospitals.
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The pandemic alone had driven up the operational costs of healthcare institutions by up to 10% over the past two years.
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Hospitals in Australia have been experiencing a huge influx of patients post the pandemic.
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The increase in costs of delivering care is normally higher than general inflation.
In addition, the high costs of compliance have been exerting extra pressure on these healthcare providers, especially post the pandemic. Healthcare regulations are a little more complex in Australia, and their implementation could vary for different states and territories. Moreover, these regulations are fast-changing, requiring health givers to constantly update in order to stay compliant.
Technology is the only cost-effective solution which could address the rising costs concerns of the healthcare providers. Cost containment can be seamlessly achieved by identifying and integrating with the right technologies.
About 92% of Australian healthcare leaders are actively seeking solutions to ease growing financial pressures on their organisations, with technology being a key means to achieving this.
(Philips Future Health Index 2023 Australian Report)
Controlling Workforce Burnout With Automation
Healthcare workers are at the forefront of imparting care to the larger masses, and thus contributing significantly to the wellbeing of any nation. Ensuring the health and wellbeing of these healthcare warriors is even more critical, as it could directly impact the quality of outcomes that they deliver.
In 2022, one in every two health professionals (47%) reported feeling burnt out in Australia.
However, Australian healthcare staff has been experiencing widespread burnout, especially post the pandemic, which has now become a key concern for the industry.
These increasing incidences could be attributed to the following factors –
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Increasing Healthcare demand –
The demand for healthcare in the country has been increasing by the day, with the country’s aging population and the rise in number of chronic diseases.
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Excessive Burnout –
With limited staff to impart patient care and increasing demand for healthcare services, there has been a growing pressure on the existing healthcare workforce to outstretch themselves and deliver quality and quantity outputs. This increased workload has been causing massive exhaustion and burnout amongst healthcare professionals, thus taking a toll on their physical and mental health. Also, as the majority of the workforce continues to use old, outdated systems and manual processes, there are increased chances of making medical errors, which puts patient safety at grave risk.
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Inadequate workforce capacity –
Staff shortages in the sector have been enormous, and this trend even precedes the Covid-19 pandemic. This problem of skills shortage is gradually wearying the Australian healthcare system and is in turn causing adverse patient outcomes. The federal government predicts a shortfall of approximately 85,000 nurses by 2025 and 123,000 nurses by 2030. Also, 72% of General Physician (GP) practices report that lack of staff has affected their operating capacity and plans for growth.
Clinicians in Australia spend around 9 hours per week conducting administrative paperwork and an additional 4 hours on government paperwork. This cost clinics around $15,000 a year in lost income.
(Australian Medical Institution)
EXPENDITURE
27% of Australian healthcare leaders are willing to explore new ways of improving staff satisfaction by reducing the pressure on doctors, nurses, caregivers & administrative staff.
There is an increasing urgency to reduce the workload of the healthcare professionals, and a greater integration of technology can help address this key challenge.
Use of automation and technologies can reduce the administrative burden of the medical personnel by freeing them of cumbersome, repetitive tasks such as appointment scheduling, managing medical records, collating disparate data, prescription management, remote patient monitoring, etc. In turn, their priorities could shift back to imparting superior care, which would drive positive changes in Australian healthcare ecosystem.
Integrating IT with Healthcare for Better Returns
Australia has already taken giant strides in implementing digital health solutions. Data and analytics were increasingly used by health leaders during the pandemic to better manage their services and strengthen their decision-making. Remote health solutions are rapidly gaining traction in the country. Use of telehealth services is also on the rise and will ensure more equitable healthcare access to the masses.
Digitization provides an unparalleled opportunity to drive efficiency across the healthcare settings in the country. Harnessing the power of data to make better medical decisions will give a strong push to healthcare to enter into the digital age. Moreover, automating operational, paper-intensive administrative tasks can result in better patient and staff experiences and reduced healthcare costs.
Automation in healthcare improved productivity by over 40%.
By 2024, 77% of healthcare leaders
state their top investment priority will be more advanced predictive technologies,
up from 33% in 2021.
Future Outlook
Gazing into the future, it would be right to say that digitalisation of the Australian healthcare system will continue to accelerate in times to come. Rapidly evolving consumer expectations are going to usher in an era of personalised, digital and integrated care experiences. Speedier deployment of new, modern technologies will streamline workflows and address the two key challenges of workforce burnout and increasing healthcare costs.
Those healthcare organizations which are able to modernize and adapt themselves in this fast-paced, tech-driven environment will be order to operate efficiently and profitably. For others, it might signify the loss of a lucrative opportunity, that could lead them towards the path of stagnation.