HIT for ICT
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb. 26 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --
Information Technology advances in Healthcare
The recent economic climate is surely not creating a ruckus across all businesses, at least not in
the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).
In recent years, the acquisition of computer technologies by healthcare organizations has
increased substantially. The spending shows an upward
tendency, placing the industry as one of the major consumers of ICT products
and services.
The adoption of ICT is essential for modern healthcare delivery systems if
they are to gain greater efficiency, reduce overall healthcare costs and
improve patient safety. IT innovations such as computer-based patient records,
hospital information systems, computer-based decision support tools,
telemedicine and new means of distributing health information to consumers have the potential of
improving care delivery.
According to Frost & Sullivan's Senior Consultant Dr. Pawel Suwinski, "The
spending on healthcare information systems in Asia Pacific in year 2007 by the
healthcare sector was valued at $15.50 billion, with advanced IT adopters such
as Japan leading the pack. This accounted for 1.5 to 2.3 percent of total healthcare expenditure."
By 2012, it is estimated that healthcare spending will almost double, with
developing economies such as India, China and the Southeast Asian countries showing the highest
growth potential with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR)
of 13.0 to 14.0 percent.
"In the next eight to ten years, we will see countries like South Korea,
Singapore, Japan, Australia, and Taiwan fully integrated and be connected to
the various levels of healthcare infrastructure to ensure time and cost-
efficient healthcare delivery," Dr. Suwinski further elaborates.
On the contrary, players in the Healthcare Information Technology (HIT) industry are also
balancing their act to cushion the impact of the financial
calamity by delaying capital projects, cutting capital and operating budgets,
and laying off workers.
"While health information technology budgets are not escaping cutbacks, a
survey of 144 chief information officers, 27 chief financial officers and vice-presidents of Finance
departments at hospitals of all sizes across the
country makes it clear that health IT remains a strategic imperative for
hospitals," adds Dr. Suwinski.
2009 and possibly part or all of 2010 will be challenging years for
healthcare service providers. Before the hit, hospitals had shown important progress in health IT
adoption, and for now, many of these initiatives are funded and moving forward.
Healthcare IT is no longer a "nice to have" additions for their operations.
It is a strategic priority for hospitals to deliver safer, higher quality and
more cost-effective care, thus enabling hospitals to stay competitive. Some hospital executives see
this as the time to invest in IT initiatives that will
deliver direct and quantifiable savings to their organizations.
About Frost & Sullivan
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Contact:
Emmie Kaur
Corporate Communications -Healthcare, Asia Pacific
DID: +603 6204 5913
Email: emmie.kaur@frost.com
Jasminder Kaur
Corporate Communications -Healthcare, Asia Pacific
DID: +65 6890 0937
Email: jkaur@frost.com
SOURCE Frost & Sullivan
CONTACT: Emmie Kaur, Corporate Communications - Healthcare, Asia Pacific,
+603 6204 5913, emmie.kaur@frost.com, or Jasminder Kaur, Corporate
Communications - Healthcare, Asia Pacific, +65 6890 0937, jkaur@frost.com, both of Frost &
Sullivan
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