New research from Jamf, a mobile device management software company, indicates that there is a direct correlation between hospital mobile device initiatives and patient satisfaction.
Global research conducted by Vanson Bourne, an independent third-party agency, and commissioned by Jamf, based on a survey of 600 healthcare IT decision markers, found that 96 percent of healthcare IT leaders who are currently implementing a mobile device initiative saw a positive impact on patient experience and satisfaction since rolling this out, with 32 percent reporting a significant increase in patient experience scores.
While one of the primary benefits of implementing a mobile device initiative is to improve patient care, healthcare organizations implementing or planning to implement mobile device initiatives expressed concern around how the devices would impact security and data privacy, and a lack of satisfaction and confidence in their current mobile device management (MDM) solution, according to the research.
Jamf surveyed healthcare IT leaders in both private and public healthcare organizations of all sizes in the Netherlands, France, Germany, United Kingdom and United States to better understand the opportunities and challenges around mobile device initiatives and management.
Among respondents who have implemented a mobile device initiative, these healthcare IT leaders noted a number of tangible benefits from the use mobile devices. Half of respondents cited improved communication across staff and departments as a result of the program, while nearly half said having a mobile device initiative yielded more efficiencies when transferring information and improving communications between patients and staff.
The adoption of mobile devices in healthcare organizations is very high, with 90 percent of organizations implementing or planning to implement a mobile device initiative. And, this is set to increase in the near future. For those currently or planning to implement a mobile device initiative, mobile devices are or will be commonly used in nurses stations (72 percent), administrative offices (63 percent) and patient rooms (56 percent). However, over half of all respondents believe that mobile device usage will further expand to both clinical care teams (59 percent) and administrative staff (54 percent), and nearly half (47 percent) plan to increase the mobile device use over the next two years.
The research also indicates that the influx of mobile devices is having a positive impact on experience. Public sector healthcare organizations who have implemented a mobile device initiative (39 percent) experienced a significant jump in patient experience scores, closely followed by private healthcare (29 percent).
However, the research also points to a systematic disconnect within healthcare organizations, as only 16 percent of those currently implementing or planning to implement a mobile device initiative have seen or would expect to see increased patient satisfaction.
Mobile device implementations are not without their challenges. Of those surveyed, 10 percent said their organization does not plan to implement a mobile device initiative. They cited a lack of resources and support headcount as their primary barriers.
The research also examined organizations’ mobile device management strategies. Only 78 percent of organizations surveyed currently have a mobile device management solution in place, however less than half of respondents (45 percent) are very satisfied with their organization’s MDM solution. This is a significant drop from 59 percent of healthcare IT decision makers who responded the same way in a 2016 survey.
What’s more, this year, security was cited as a top concern, with nearly half (49 percent) demanding to see an improvement in their MDM solution’s security.
“Security breaches in general are growing exponentially in the healthcare industry. As mobile device initiatives expand in healthcare for use-cases such as patient engagement and clinical care, it is worrying that healthcare IT decision makers are becoming less confident in their mobile device management solution,” Adam Mahmud, healthcare alliance manager, Jamf, said in a statement. “Hospitals and clinics need a robust and secure MDM offering to support their mobility initiatives aimed at increasing caregiver efficiencies and improving the patient experience.”
As confidential patient data is shared among caregiving staff and healthcare organizations on a regular basis, security is clearly a key priority for healthcare organizations. However, almost all (95 percent) healthcare IT decision makers believe that their current MDM solution could be improved. In addition, nearly one-third (31 percent) of respondents who are not implementing a mobile device initiative are avoiding this because of concerns around their ability to meet the security requirements.
Global healthcare organizations are working to protect confidential patient data and ensure compliance with industry regulations, and are also looking to dispatch patch software to mitigate security risks. When asked about their challenges around implementing a mobile device initiative, data privacy (54 percent), security/compliance (51 percent) and/or regularly patching software (40 percent) were highlighted to be the key focus areas.
