Bringing innovation to healthcare

Trends in the health sector are signalling a growing need for digital transformation. Obstacles like rising costs, new management systems, shifts to home care, prioritisation of equitable access and patient experience, and workforce challenges have been shaping the development of healthcare.

The Private Hospitals Association (PHA) works hard in supporting its members and ensuring they succeed over these challenges.

One way it helps is through its annual conference, the next one is confirmed for Thursday 14th November 2024, in Barberstown Castle, where major innovations, idea sharing, and trends are covered.

On a global scale, the entire patient pathway is now seeing innovative technology and practices applied, focusing on seven key areas.

They are electronic health records and systems, telehealth and virtual care, differentiated models of care delivery, robotics, implant devices and wearables, artificial intelligence, augmented reality (AR), and virtual reality (VR).

In Ireland, world-class innovations in patient treatments and patient experiences, as well as in hospital management and operations, are being applied.

The PHA engaged EY to assess the adoption of new technology across Ireland’s network of private hospitals.

Several hospitals and hospital groups contributed to this report like Blackrock Health, Bon Secours Health System, Charter Medical Private Hospital, Kingsbridge Private Hospital, Mater Private Network, St. Vincent’s Private Hospital, Saint John of God Hospital, and UMPC.

Also, a recent survey launched by the PHA assessed the public’s awareness and readiness for new healthcare technologies, with 500 responses across Ireland.

In Ireland, world-class innovations in patient treatments and patient experiences, as well as in hospital management and operations

The significant finding was that only 42 per cent of respondents are willing to engage with innovative healthcare solutions, despite 94 per cent awareness among respondents.

Other findings included men being slightly more aware than women of new healthcare technologies like AI, robotics, and implants and were somewhat more willing to adopt the latest technologies.

As awareness of these solutions grows, Irish hospitals and clinics constantly innovate in clinical treatment.

Some recent examples include Blackrock Clinic, which introduced Stryker MAKO SmartRobotic in 2021, which aids orthopaedic surgeons in improving patients ’recovery time and reducing post-care needs, as well as Amyloid PET scans, enabling early detection of Alzheimer’s disease and is a new and exciting step towards early intervention and treatment of Alzheimer patients.

Others, like UMPC-SSC, developed the world’s most comprehensive post-ACL reconstruction tracking, reducing recovery time from ACL surgery to under nine weeks.

Hermitage Clinic introduced the CyberKnife in 2022, a first-in-class innovation within Ireland that delivers radiation treatment more efficiently and with a lower risk of damaging surrounding tissue.

Furthermore, progress in hospitals has accelerated rapidly, with innovations in hospital design, management tools and systems, and management processes taking place in numerous locations.

Some work includes Bon Secours Health System, whose new state-of-the-art hospital in Limerick is designed to cater perfectly to the patient experience while addressing sustainability goals. It’s's also implementing three strategic innovation projects focused on a new EHR system (in partnership with Meditech), sustainability (a new eco-friendly heat pump), and AI-enabled diagnostics in radiology.

Other places, like the Mater Private, have invested €26m to transform into a network of fully digitised hospitals by 2024/2025 by implementing an EHR system (in partnership with Meditech) and using digital platforms and tools like Moodle for e-learning and PowerBI for data management.

These innovations aren’t just limited to private clinics but also done in conjunction with public hospitals.

A major example is Charter Medical Private Hospital, which has engaged in several novel public-private partnerships with the HSE to deliver urgent and ongoing care to those in need through a Rapid Access Clinic, a Minor Injuries Clinic, and an Intermediate Care Facility.

Others like CMPH, in partnership with Origin Healthcare, will develop a patient management and vital sign monitoring IT platform, while St Vincent’s Private Hospital implemented digital tools to manage in-patients, view and coordinate bed management, and streamline the portering process.

Some are implementing an overhaul of its systems to deliver better outcomes. One is St John of God Hospital which is bringing in a new EPR and Office 365 platform as part of its 2023-2028 IT strategy.

While Kingsbridge Healthcare Group is digitally enabling its patient pathways through a Compucare 8 platform that digitises its hospital management processes. It is the first adopter of a Patient Portal that allows patients to view availability and make appointments.

Those and many other innovations focussed on systems, treatment, and clinical governance exist within private hospitals in Ireland.