Implementing personalized medicine programs without access to the latest software and hardware is akin to traversing a creek without the proverbial paddle. In fact, technology is mentioned as a key factor in effectively delivering personalized healthcare, according to Perspectives on Personalized Medicine and Software as a Service, a recent HIMSS Media survey of healthcare professionals and leaders across the nation.^*

For example, one respondent who deemed their organization as extremely effective at delivering personalized medical experiences attributed this success to using the “newest technology” while another who classified their organization as being very effective at delivering personalized medicine said that “much of the technology in place is there to allow providers to give each individual the care needed.” On the flip side, a respondent who said their organization is not effectively delivering personalized medicine noted that their “current technology is not conducive to this,” while another who considered their organization as only somewhat effective at delivering personalized medicine indicated that it is “difficult . . . with current systems.”

This connection between up-to-date technology and success delivering personalized medicine is not surprising, according to Robert Havasy, Senior Director of Connected Health at HIMSS. “Personalized medicine requires genomic sequencing tools that make it possible to provide patients with tailored drugs based on gene characteristics. Plus, when the definition of personalized medicine is expanded beyond just the genetic and physiologic meanings, providers also need to have technology that offers easy access to data that allows them to personalize medicine for each individual’s lifestyle—their tastes, needs, wants and abilities,” Havasy said.

As such, healthcare organizations might find that it behooves them to leverage software as a service (SaaS) models, instead of purchasing technology outright. Survey respondents most frequently called out the following SaaS benefits:

• Simplify/modernize IT (32%)
• Gain greater flexibility and agility in adapting to changing business needs (27%)
• Accelerate or drive digital transformation or innovation in care delivery (26%)
• Improve competitive edge (26%)
• Choose best performance, privacy, security for each application/workload (25%)
• Facilitate inter-organizational data sharing/analytics (20%)

In addition, with SaaS models, healthcare organizations can ensure that they are not working with obsolete technologies. “When purchasing technologies, providers are stuck until the next upgrade cycle comes around. The right SaaS model can help get around that by rotating older technologies out more frequently,” Havasy said. “With SaaS, you constantly get small feature enhancements, improvements, and changes – every month. Users can continually absorb the changes and deliver personalized medicine while confidently leveraging the most up-to-date technologies.”

With all of these advantages, it is not surprising that nearly 90% of organizations are already using SaaS for at least one use case, with EHRs, clinical information systems and telemedicine/remote patient monitoring ranking as the most common. In addition, according to survey respondents, organizations that are already using SaaS models are more likely to express interest in leveraging these models to provide access to hardware.

For instance, 51% of organizations that are using SaaS for clinical information systems expressed interest in relying on a SaaS model to lease hardware. “The biggest advantage is the management of the hardware is typically part of the subscription,” Havasy concluded. “Organizations no longer have to find and hire the people required to keep the technology up and running. This can really help those that are struggling to recruit technical staff in tight labor markets.”

Read more on SaaS research highlights.

* HIMSS Media Survey: Perspectives on Personalized Medicine and Software as a Service, July 2019, conducted among 120 IT, business and clinical professionals and leaders at U.S. hospitals and health systems (multi-hospital systems, integrated delivery networks, academic medical centers, stand-alone specialty hospitals, and outpatient practices). GE was not identified as the survey sponsor.