Healthcare Workers Demand Better Technology to Improve Patient Care, According to Global Healthcare Report by SOTI
73% of healthcare workers indicated that existing technology and systems were not equipped to handle global pandemic
New York, NEW YORK – November 10, 2020 – The global pandemic has highlighted the cracks in the global healthcare system and exposed many of its structural and technological challenges. With shelter-in-place orders being mandated in many locations throughout the globe, and hospitals being overwhelmed with an influx in patients, the healthcare industry needs to implement fast, efficient and safe ways to care for their patients – virtually and in-person. However, according to a new global research report commissioned by SOTI, North American healthcare workers do not have the technology needed to support critical patient care. This research was conducted across seven countries, U.S., Canada, UK, Germany, France, Sweden and Australia, among homecare workers, visiting nurses, nurses in the field in both private and public sectors.
The SOTI report, Critical Technology for Critical Care: State of Mobility in Healthcare 2020/21, found that half of healthcare employers in North America need to invest in new or better technology to improve the patient care experience. In fact, 77% of healthcare workers stated they struggle with technology setups in the field and 50% revealed that trying to use their employer’s technology wastes time they could be using to help patients.
“Mobile technology has never been more business-critical in the healthcare industry than it is today. For years, we at SOTI have been helping equip healthcare organizations with reliable and efficient digital technology needed to better serve patient needs. This pandemic has only heightened the major gaps in organizations that have not prioritized integrated mobile technology solutions,” said Shash Anand, VP of Product Strategy, SOTI. “Implementing mobile technology solutions provides healthcare workers with a seamless, safer and faster patient experience and equips them with the tools needed to provide critical care.”
Faulty and Inefficient Technology Takes Critical Time Away from Patient Care
SOTI’s research found that 432 hours are lost, per healthcare worker per year, dealing with technical or system difficulties in North America. On a global basis, this means that only 39% of healthcare workers’ time can be spent focused on patient care. The rest of the time is spent on tasks like accessing and updating patient records, accessing test results, traveling and recording information for administrative purposes, which technology could help to automate.
Percentage of Time Not Caring for Patients or Traveling:
| Global | 56% |
| U.S. | 55% |
| Canada | 54% |
Anand continued, “Mobile technology can help to reduce downtime and automate many of the activities that are keeping healthcare workers away from their patients. Whether it’s providing apps that can easily capture and share patient healthcare information such as lab results or troubleshooting devices in the field. Having immediate accessibility to business-critical tools where every second counts is now essential and can be done by implementing a mobile device into the daily activities of a healthcare employee.”
The Global Pandemic Has Healthcare Workers on High-Alert to Improve Technology for Future Crises
According to the report, 65% of global healthcare workers agreed their employer needed to invest in better technology for a future health crises. In the U.S., that number was 60%, while in Canada this increased to 64%. In addition, 44% of North American respondents said the pandemic had an impact on the systems and technology they use.
Anand concluded, “The global pandemic has shown the healthcare industry that technology is critical. While during the pandemic, a third indicated that new systems and technology were introduced, 71% of U.S. healthcare workers said their technology and systems were not prepared to manage any situations related to COVID-19. This number increased in Canada to 78%.”
The Critical Technology for Critical Care: State of Mobility in Healthcare 2020/21 Report can be downloaded here.
Report Methodology
Commissioned by SOTI, Arlington Research, an independent market research agency, conducted research to provide the content for the State of Mobility in Healthcare Industry Report 2020/21. 475 interviews were conducted using an online methodology with homecare workers, visiting nurses, nurses in the field (in both private and public) across seven countries between September 28 and October 7, 2020. All respondents are aged 18 and over, working in companies with 50 or more global employees. The research provides an insight into how technologically equipped healthcare workers are, the key mobility challenges they are experiencing on the frontline and how well their organizations have fared during the COVID-19 pandemic.
About SOTI
SOTI is the world’s most trusted provider of mobile and IoT management solutions, with more than 17,000 enterprise customers and millions of devices managed worldwide. SOTI’s innovative portfolio of solutions and services provide the tools organizations need to truly mobilize their operations and optimize their mobility investments. SOTI extends secure mobility management to provide an integrated solution to manage and secure all mobile devices and connected peripherals in an organization.
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