Half of the surveyed executives said their hospitals are actively monitoring the use of automation technologies to improve accuracy and reduce costs.
The use of automation technologies at hospitals and health systems has skyrocketed during the past year, according to a survey of chief financial officers and revenue cycle executives.
The Guidehouse Center for Health Insights analysis of a survey conducted by the Healthcare Financial Management Association found that the number of hospitals and health systems using automation technologies has tripled in that time.
Half of the surveyed executives said their hospitals are actively monitoring the use of automation technologies to improve accuracy and reduce costs.
"The pressure for health systems to transform financial and operational performance has intensified with the pandemic," Michele Mayes, Guidehouse partner and operational effectiveness solutions leader said in a statement.
"While the supply chain and revenue cycle are key areas to target, optimizing technology assets like automation is essential for providers to drive corporate services efficiencies that create a more resilient future. The technology itself won’t solve the problem but wrapping better processes and structure around an optimized solution will."
In addition, 37% of respondents cited intelligent automation, including robotic process automation, as their top technology enhancement priority over the next 12 months, followed by cybersecurity (30%) and enterprise resource planning (27%).
Although enterprise resource planning is a top priority, 45% of providers are still more than two years away from deploying enterprise resource planning technology, with 15% suggesting they have no plans for it, up from 9% a year ago, the survey showed.
The survey also revealed lags in cybersecurity. When asked about their top priority for improving cybersecurity, 43% of surveyed executives cited using modern security technology to monitor network and device anomalies.
However, only 1% cited tracking technology assets and just 9% cited removing legacy software. As health systems have undergone mergers and acquisitions, many have layered on new technologies instead of replacing the old ones, which is a common driver of insecure assets and cybersecurity threats, the researchers said.
"In many cases, providers are not taking full advantage of the benefits their technology investments offer to solve their greatest business challenges – and it's working against them in terms of efficiency and security," Guidehouse partner and health IT solutions co-leader Subra Sripada, said in a statement.
Alexandra Wilson Pecci is an editor for HealthLeaders.
