*By Vanessa Guarise
Being immersed in the hospital routine is not a simple task. At all times, professionals in the sector need to deal with different situations and surprises and, at the same time, not allow any harmful impact on the quality of patient care. According to data from global consultancy Ernst & Young (EY), among the main challenges of Brazilian medicine are the resistance in the adoption of technology, the lack of investment, the retention of the workforce and the increased incidence of burnout and depression among professionals in the field.
The research included the participation of 11 countries and, in the global context, other points of concern among workers in the segment were highlighted, such as the lack of autonomy (42%), work overload (38%) and concerns related to safety of the patient (27%). This scenario highlights the need to search for alternatives that help mitigate these gaps that directly affect care for those most in need of care: patients.
Digitalization as an ally to solve medical challenges
The high volume of demands, the increasingly scarce time for assistance and the lack of assertive tools are issues that can result in drops in productivity, increased costs and inaccurate diagnoses. In addition to these medical challenges, doctors and nurses still face the excess of available information and the difficulty in filtering the best inputs that are actually relevant.
To achieve this, the sector must equip itself with resources and tools that keep clinical staff up to date with the latest knowledge, procedures and clinical recommendations. This way, it will be possible to make decisions with greater confidence and clarity, offering the best care to the patient.
Another factor of broad relevance is the attention paid to the health of these professionals. A study of the São Paulo Medical Association (APM), carried out in 2022, points out that the majority of doctors work for more than 50 hours a week, with 24% of them stating that they often exceed the limit of 60 hours or more.
The same research indicates that this overload has direct effects on the well-being of these employees, with almost 27% of them not practicing physical activity and 30% taking medication continuously. Among the diseases that affect this population, sleep disorders (44%), headache (30%) and psychological disorders (22%) were reported.
With this scenario, it is necessary to further encourage the application of tools that adjust to current workflows and that alleviate the high demand exerted by these professionals, whether in the administrative part or in offices. The solutions for clinical decision support (CDS) fulfill this role by providing scientific and evidence-based data that helps to significantly improve the daily lives of healthcare professionals and institutions.
Using it, teams begin to standardize their communication processes based on reliable information, improving decisions related to care and reducing clinical variability. Furthermore, as a result of this process, the institutions’ costs and cash flow are optimized.
Increasingly digital healthcare
Technological advances have been significant in the health sector. In 2023, 41% of companies in the sector increased their investments in Information Technology (IT), according to data from TechTarget. This scenario tends to continue in a promising way, with the creation and implementation of solutions that make a difference in the daily lives of healthcare professionals.
The healthcare sector and its professionals face countless daily challenges. However, with investment in correct technologies and information, the segment tends to evolve significantly in terms of the results of clinical processes and, of course, in the delivery of care that provides the best care for the population's health.
*Vanessa Guarise is Executive Accounts and Relationships Manager at Wolters Kluwer Health in Brazil
Notice: The opinion presented in this article is the responsibility of its author and not of ABES - Brazilian Association of Software Companies
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