KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Nov. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The role of IT in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) healthcare industry has evolved over the past few years. While IT previously merely enabled automation, it now affects integration across the entire healthcare delivery value chain in the region. These developments are in line with the need for better collaboration among healthcare providers, payers and governments to enhance the customer experience. As data is the foremost element that drives customer ownership and engagement, digitization strategies that generate meaningful data will become a central feature of the healthcare industry over the next five years. Healthcare players and IT vendors are already investing in tools that liberate data from organisational silos and put it in the hands of the consumer.
New research from Frost & Sullivan, Analysis of Healthcare IT Market Across APAC, finds that the market earned revenues of US$5.27 billion in 2013 and estimates this to double to US$12.60 billion in 2020 at a compound annual growth rate of 13.3 percent. The study covers clinical as well as administrative and financial information systems.
For complimentary access to more information on this research, please visit: http://corpcom.frost.com/forms/APAC_PR_DJeremiah_P7C2-48_22Sept14.
Government initiatives and incentives continue to be the predominant factor driving healthcare IT adoption in the APAC. Digitisation of healthcare delivery is being prioritised by governments in the region as they expect technology to help reduce healthcare costs and improve the quality of care. Healthcare IT is also anticipated to facilitate the integration of patient information through national and regional health information networks. In recognition of these benefits, APAC governments are entering public-private partnerships to fuel investment in IT from the private sector.
"Medical tourism in APAC is encouraging healthcare providers in the region to adopt sophisticated technologies and establish world-class facilities," said Frost & Sullivan Healthcare Industry Analyst Natasha Gulati. "Robust IT tools will enable healthcare providers to not only meet international quality standards, but also globalise their services to serve patients beyond their local borders. Technological sophistication will also help healthcare providers secure international accreditation."
However, the lacklustre performance of some healthcare IT systems deployed in the region has made both healthcare providers and consumers wary of investments. In the past, challenges around healthcare IT systems included deficient functionalities, lack of integration capabilities with existing systems, and below-expected return on investments. While a lot needs to be done at various levels of care to address these challenges, decisive steps have been taken by corporates, governments and not-for-profit organizations, particularly towards improving interoperability.
Thus far, healthcare providers as well as IT vendors have not been able to quantify the clinical benefits and qualitative improvements in patient outcomes. Consequently, the complete value delivered through IT implementation in the healthcare space has not been adequately communicated to all stakeholders.
"Despite these technological hurdles, the digital consumer is making its presence felt in the APAC healthcare industry," noted Gulati. "This is because of the rising adoption of connected devices such as mobile devices." Healthcare consumers are demanding access to health and wellness information and present varying degrees of intended use across countries.
Even healthcare providers are increasingly exploring digital hospital concepts that revolve around data and information being captured, stored, analysed and transmitted electronically. Some companies have already started developing big data and data analytics strategies, with the goal of providing predictive solutions that help manage health risk as well as support wellness and prevention. These strategies are likely to pay off, as data explosion in the APAC healthcare industry is inevitable.
Analysis of Healthcare IT Market Across APAC is part of the Connected Health (http://www.connectedhealth.frost.com) Growth Partnership Service program. Frost & Sullivan's related studies include: Telecommunications Service Providers in Healthcare, Malaysia Healthcare Outlook, and Healthcare Cloud in APAC. All studies included in subscriptions provide detailed market opportunities and industry trends evaluated following extensive interviews with market participants.
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Analysis of Healthcare IT Market Across APAC
P7C2-48
Contact:
Donna Jeremiah
Corporate Communications – Asia Pacific
P: +61 (02) 8247 8927
F: +61 (02) 9252 8066
E: djeremiah@frost.com
Carrie Low
Corporate Communications – Asia Pacific
P: +603 6204 5910
F: +603 6201 7402
E: carrie.low@frost.com
Melissa Tan
Corporate Communications – Asia Pacific
P: +65 6890 0926
F: +65 6890 0999
E: melissa.tan@frost.com
