By Dr. Christine Gall, Head of Healthcare Marketing

The COVID-19 pandemic spurred adoption of digital technologies around the world, but it also magnified gaps in care coverage and access to quality care for many in underserved areas. In May 2022, the International Data Corporation (IDC) European Healthcare Digital Executive Summit convened with more than 50 senior European healthcare executives to discuss how to standardize and scale digital innovation in European healthcare. Although European healthcare systems operate differently than in the U.S., there are also many similarities and common goals.

The primary focus of the Summit was improving patient care and safety through technology in a more efficient and effective manner, while keeping the care patient centric.

One overall strategy is the “digital front door” meaning that access to healthcare services can start anywhere and at any time. This resembles the concept of the online consumer marketplace. The decision to seek care is similar to decision-making regarding the purchase of goods and services. This process starts well before the actual transaction is made.

• The trend toward telehealth services, wearables, smartphones, mobile health apps and online health-related platforms, which were growing prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, has accelerated dramatically.¹ One of the current challenges is how to ensure continued growth and alignment of this emerging sector with the larger healthcare ecosystem.
  
  
• The capability of digital technologies to provide care to patients when and where they need it in response to the rise in consumerism in healthcare is a developing trend.
  
  
• Improve the experience of healthcare providers and patients. This trend recognizes that the patient and healthcare workforce experiences are opposite sides of the same coin. The digital front door can improve staff experiences, creating efficiencies and allowing for more flexibility in how healthcare data are collected and used, and how that process informs how healthcare services are provided.
  
  
• In both Europe and the U.S., it has between difficult for healthcare organizations to communicate and share data between broader ecosystems. Yet the sharing of data and removing silos is key to providing greater access to patients. For example, in the U.S., there are approximately 263 specialists per 100,000 population in urban areas, but only 30 specialists per 100,000 in rural areas. Telehealth services can help mitigate that disparity, by extending the reach of best-in-specialty providers.²

• 5G networks to provide the low-latency and high speed required for real-time video interactions.³
  
  
• High bandwidth to enable sending large files such as video or medical images, which allow more devices to connect.
  
  
• Effective wireless transmission

T-Mobile has America’s largest, fastest, and most reliable 5G network, imagined for tomorrow but ready to give you an edge today.⁴ At T-Mobile for Business, we’re focused on providing healthcare organizations with the connectivity solutions and dedicated, exceptional service you need to keep you reliably connected with both your staff and patients. To find out more about how 5G will support digital transformation in healthcare, read 5 ways 5G will radically streamline healthcare operations⁵ and 5G and telehealth: Significant benefits for providers, patients, and payers.⁶ Or, visit T-Mobile for Business - Healthcare to find out more about how we can take care of your business.⁷