Full coverage: HIMSS23 APAC Health Conference

Home hospitalisation, tech-enabled preventive care, and genomic data-driven personalised care are some of the emerging trends in care in the Asia-Pacific region. Dr Deok-Hyun Han, Vice CMIO of Samsung Medical Center, Oscar Lee, professor and vice superintendent of China Medical University Hospital, Low Cheng Ooi, associate professor and CTO of Sheares Healthcare, and Dr Mohammad Adib Khumaidi, president of the Indonesian Medical Association, sat together in the closing panel discussion "The Next Wave in Care" at HIMSS23 APAC.  Future of telehealth, harnessing patient data "[The] COVID-19 pandemic has substantially accelerated the speed of a digital transformation at least by 10 years, meaning that we now have all appreciated the strength of telehealth," shared Prof Lee.  For him, some applications of telehealth will be further developed post-pandemic, such as the growing trend of home hospitalisation as seen in the United States. "Patients don't have to [travel] all the way to be hospitalised and then centralised in the hospital. They can be treated at home – that's the next wave of care that I see." Prof Lee also noted the "rapid advances" in wearable health technologies, which have allowed people to get a hold of their physiological data.  "But how will we make sense of the information generated by wearable devices?" he asked. Pondering the same question, Dr Han said it remains a challenge for providers to efficiently collect and analyse a patient's everyday data for preventive care. "While we generally have detailed data at the earliest from an individual's healthy phase, that [data] remains [inaccessible]," he noted.  In managing volumes of data that health systems can now tap into, empowering patients to become transparent with, as well as knowledgeable about their condition, is imperative. "Patients need to clearly communicate their conditions to their healthcare providers to [allow them to] make enough informed decisions. They must [also] understand the relevant medical details to receive proper care," Dr Han said. To this end, SMC has come up with several initiatives, including their mobile admission process and mobile questionnaire system.  "Patient engagement, though very challenging, is crucial for qualified care." Technology that cares A/Prof Low sees that the next wave in care is "technology [bringing] care to the patient," enhancing particularly the patient experience. "Patient experience is not just about talking to the doctor. It is the experience of once you find out what illness you have, how you navigate the system, how you find your way to the right specialist, how you get care that is affordable, and how you get the care that is of high quality. [Patient experience is], in a way, where you can have a good relationship with the doctor to explain everything to you…" Sharing their lessons from the recent pandemic, Dr Khumaidi emphasised that every stakeholder in the health ecosystem – from providers, payers, and policymakers to patients and their families – must have a better understanding of the concept and technology behind personalised medicine.  Additionally, the appropriate patient consent regarding the use of genomic data, which has seen increased collection in recent years, must also be ensured. "[Genomic data-based] personalised medicine is the new treatment paradigm," he declared. However, there must be some sort of guideline or ethical considerations in providing such kind of care, Dr Low advised. "This kind of guidance [falls] to some extent at the national level, at the policy level, and at the ministerial level. But even within the professional bodies themselves, we need to be able to be cognisant of the validated scientific [evidence] before we can make that as a recommendation." With the influx of new health technologies in the market today, healthcare providers are further reminded to remember their purpose before jumping the gun and implementing them. "The next wave is not about adopting the technology but what you are trying to achieve with the technology," A/Prof Low said. "We should be employing all the different types of technology to bring [care to the] personal level." "At the end of the day, [our goal is to] achieve person-enabled health. The role of the hospital will further transform from treating diseases to health promotion so that we make [everyone] in the community not only live longer but also healthier," Prof Lee said.

Health CIOs shared outcomes, considerations, and success factors in implementing new technologies to advance care.

If they want to apply these models, it has to be hosted locally to preserve data integrity, said Dr Roel Bolt, CMIO of Franciscus Hospital.

Gareth Sherlock, former CIO of Cleveland Clinic London, shared their lessons from setting up a fully digital hospital in a new city. 

Interest in the pre-conference FHIR workshop exceeded our expectations, and we also saw significant developments in digital twins, emerging technologies, and generative AI.

Dr Tamara Sunbul of Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare talked about the promising application of gene editing in healthcare but also cautions on uncertainties.

Cooperation is key to the successful implementation of new technologies such as AI for improving care, said Prof Ho Young Lee of Seoul National University Bundang Hospital.

Digital twin technology has been enabling organisations' shift to precision and preventive medicine.

This session delved into birthing pains the Regional Clinical Hospital in Tatarstan went through to achieve HIMSS Stage 6 EMRAM.

This HIMSS23 APAC session put a spotlight on the hospital's recent digital transformation journey.

Dive into the transformative power of AI in modern medicine. Explore the shift from traditional methods to advanced systems and the enduring relevance of existing health record systems. Discover how GenAI is shaping the future of healthcare and research.

Making digital health an extension of health facilities can help organisations meet the growing shortage of health workers, says HIMSS President Hal Wolf.

Speakers emphasise working together as the key to success in digital transformation.

Healthcare IT News’ APAC Managing Editor weighs in on the sessions he's looking forward to at the HIMSS APAC conference this year.

This HIMSS23 APAC speaker will share how Taiwan’s Chang Gung Memorial Hospital transformed into a leading data-driven smart hospital.

Healthcare IT is an evolutionary process, not a revolution, says one health tech executive.

The country enacted a Health Minister regulation on medical records in late August.

UNC Health Care successfully merged and consolidated more than four separate record systems into a single, enterprise-wide EMR. 

Digital reforms like SATUSEHAT in Indonesia encourage healthcare providers to adopt the FHIR standard to achieve advanced interoperability – and get their own data repository for analytics and innovation.

Various organizations have explored telepsychiatry and hybrid group therapy to offer more options for patients seeking mental health support.

Secure messaging apps are proving to be a key tool for healthcare organizations.

Ascom puts all crucial functionalities for enabling mission-critical communication in one dependable device.

In the realm of healthcare, ensuring cybersecurity is not just the concern of Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs). It involves a strategic approach to protect sensitive information and systems, and this responsibility falls on various individuals within an organisation. Cybersecurity strategies must be tailored to each organisation, accounting for factors such as size, sector, and industry-specific regulations. Regardless of these differences, the challenge remains: organisations of diverse teams with varying expertise, cultures, and priorities.  In the context of healthcare delivery organisations (HDOs), where biomedical practitioners and support staff are integral to daily operations, the connection between cybersecurity and patient safety is critical. However, engaging these individuals in cybersecurity discussions can be complex due to certain barriers:  Lack of understanding or technical background: biomedical practitioners may have limited knowledge of technology and cybersecurity and may not understand the implications of insecure systems or practices.  Different priorities: Biomedical practitioners’ primary focus is on patient care, while the CISO’s primary focus is on protecting systems and data.  Resistance to Change: Biomedical practitioners may be resistant to changes in workflow, especially if they believe that security changes or security measures will slow down their ability to provide care.  Time Constraints: Clinical staff often have limited time and may not prioritise cybersecurity training or discussions. To overcome these challenges, it’s important to take a proactive approach and communicate the benefits of initiatives that security teams are driving. Here are strategies that have proved effective:  Explain the risks: When implementing significant changes, offer clear reasons behind the alterations. Highlight the potential consequences if a change isn’t made, explain the risks and reasons why you’re doing what you’re doing, and you’ll build a team of allies.  Emphasise patient safety: Articulate the impact of cybersecurity initiatives on patient safety. Explain how securing systems can improve patient safety by protecting sensitive information and ensuring uptime of systems when they are resilient to cyberattacks. Taking a device offline for maintenance can be a disruptive event for clinical care, but collaborating with clinical staff to educate them on patient safety impacts of not patching a device can alleviate some of the operational pain associated with device downtime.  Provide training: Offer training sessions to help biomedical staff to understand the importance of cybersecurity, and practical measures to be cyber-safe every day in both professional and personal settings. Regularly educate your staff about cybersecurity topics such as phishing and using strong passwords. Biomedical staff are often exposed to different cyber risks in the care setting than your knowledge workers. Realise the biggest training impact by ensuring you tailor training to be relevant and specific to the audience.  Be available: Create an open communication environment. Make security controls transparent to deter risky behaviours and encourage best practices. Establish a connection with biomedical staff, addressing their queries and understanding their concerns.  Lead by example: Demonstrate the importance of security by following the practices in your own team, and encourage others to do the same with open cyber communications.  By taking these steps, biomedical staff can gain a deeper appreciation for the role of cybersecurity in their field and work together to enhance patient safety, improve the organisation's security infrastructure, and ultimately create a more secure and efficient healthcare environment. At Claroty, we understand that establishing strong healthcare cybersecurity is no easy task. With the experience of working with many HDOs, the Claroty team brings a wealth of practical knowledge to optimise workflow and speed up the time to value from the engagement. We help teams drive ROI while ensuring the highest quality of care within a secure digital landscape.