Digital transformation has been a fundamental part of future healthcare plans. Providing healthcare organisations with technological infrastructure, digital transformation continues to innovate, adapt, and improve the delivery of healthcare. This, however, requires major change; if managed incorrectly, it can have massive repercussions on business processes, functionality, and service delivery.
The key to digital transformation success?... Effective business change management.
Let’s start with what digital transformation looks like within the healthcare sector and why it’s so important for business change to be managed throughout the transformational process.
Digital Transformation
Digital transformation essentially seeks to change, alter, or update organisational processes by effectively utilising digital tools. Digital transformation can have a number of outcomes. The outcomes from digital transformation often vary from hospital to hospital and are not only dependent on the IT infrastructure already in place, but also, how far along the organisation is in their transformational journey.
Transformational Outcomes
Increases overall efficiency:
- Increase systems functionality
- Digitise manual tasks
- Introduce or extend the use of automation
- Streamlines existing processes
Improves communications between:
- All departments
- The whole organisation
- Healthcare staff & patients
Strengthen IT infrastructure:
- Time saved
- Improve accuracy
- Empower employees
For example, if the aim of an NHS Trust is to improve patient care delivery, the organisation may look to develop digital transformation plans in order to achieve this outcome. Part of their digital transformation strategy could involve investing in a new IT System that would improve the accessibility of health records. Their digital transformation plan would look to implement an EPR system that, when in place, would operate to reduce time spent on the administrative tasks, increase accessibility of health records, as well as making data more secure. However, the introduction of an EPR system is never as simple as getting from A to B and catalyses a change in business processes. It’s change management that supports this process.
Keys to Success
Business change management is key to managing the process of digital transformation. Typically, a healthcare organisation will hire a change team that include professionals at various levels. The change team is usually made up of the Business Change Manager and Change Analysts.
From the initial planning phase, to implementation, to beyond the go-live stage, business change management is what drives a successful digital transformation. The change team are responsible for communicating changes in process to stakeholders, providing education for IT system users, reporting on progress and much more. Handling the process of change, the team play an important part in delivering on digital transformation.
IT Works Health
Implementing a new EPR system or clinical system? Planning for a digital transformation project? As niche recruitment experts, we have access to a really strong network of change experts. We have over 16 years’ experience, providing staffing solutions within our market niche, supporting healthcare clients with their digital transformation projects.
Reach out to us today to find out how we can help resource your digital transformation project!
