According to research, 70 percent of healthcare companies are looking to digitize their operations in order to facilitate growth. With personalized medicine and value-based care on the rise, the Healthcare industry is finally recognizing the importance of a digital transformation. To better prepare you for what’s to come, here are trends you can expect to see in 2018:

1. Cloud computing in healthcare

The cloud access technology has increased the accessibility for both the patients and doctor alike. The patients are now accessing their test results on the cloud without having to wait for hours to get admitted. In some developed countries, it is expected that by 2019, more than 60% of the interactions with the healthcare experts and facilities will take place using mobile devices. Paper filing of the patient’s record is becoming a thing of the past. Hospitals and are all storing the Patient records over the cloud and connecting the patients with the cloud to get 24/7 access to their medical records and test results.

2. Mobile Healthcare and Telehealth are on the Rise

With a majority of consumers connected throughout the day on a mobile device, it’s not surprising that people want efficient healthcare they can access via these devices. Whether looking for a doctor on-demand, talking with a physician via an app instead of going into an urgent care, or being able to check benefits coverage on a healthcare payer app… mobility and telehealth are what patients and members want. To respond to this demand, mobile digital access will be an increasingly high priority for healthcare organizations in 2018.

3. Internet of Things (IoT)

The Internet of Things (IoT) can be tricky – there seems to be many definitions floating around. Forbes article describes it best: “IoT is the concept of connecting any device with an on and off switch to the Internet.” Also, Gartner predicts that by 2020, there will be over 26 billion connected devices. This will foster a giant network of connected “things,” including the connection between people using said devices. Even in its infancy, IoT is making its way through within all industries and isn’t expected to slow down in the coming year.

4. Telemedicine in healthcare

Telemedicine involves the use of telecommunication technology to remotely diagnose and treat the patients. In a survey from 2016, it was found that doctors consider telemedicine as a better way to treat chronic diseases. They say that the traditional office visits to doctors are more tiresome and demoralizing for patients.With telemedicine, patients can receive the best possible healthcare, if they just have a smartphone. It saves time and money for both the doctor and the patient. Telemedicine is finding great success in the field of mental health care. The patients needing emotional support have quick access to therapists on just a click of the button.

5. Data Quality Remains a Medical Necessity

On the same page as real-time, accurate data, clinicians need the same afforded to their patients so providers can give the highest quality of care and avoid potential mistakes. This may not necessarily be a new trend for 2018, but it’s one that remains a top priority. Healthcare systems need to get on top of eliminating batch processing and have the most current electronic medical records (EMRs) always available for patient care.

6. Artificial intelligence in the healthcare sector

Data is the leader in the digital world. Manipulation of the data is proving revolutionary in all the fields of digital transformation. By measuring the customer satisfaction to identifying risk factors for the patients, artificial intelligence is proving its worth everywhere. There is a new concept being discussed globally, which is the Internet of (Medical) Thing (IoMT). Using this concept, mobile and wearable devices are connected to work as a cohesive self, to create medical health reports and data.

In 2016 it was big data, in 2017 it was AI, in 2018 it’sblockchain. Every year has its trend, even when the fad has some reality to it, too much money ends up backing buzzwords with no clear path to market adoption.This year, we will see money flowing into blockchain like never before and this may well be a great technology to solve some key problems in healthcare.