Patient satisfaction has emerged as the main driver for IT investments in the Asia/Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ) region between now and 2013, according to a recent survey conducted by IDC Health Insights. (Refer to Figure 1) In this survey, 310 healthcare organisations across the region were interviewed in order to explore their sentiments and adoption plans for horizontal and industry-specific IT solutions. More insights are revealed in the IDC Health Insights report, “Asia/Pacific (Excluding Japan) Healthcare IT Trends 2012 - 2013”.



"Patient satisfaction is the key business goal for healthcare organisations today. With patients becoming more enlightened as well as demanding, it is imperative for healthcare organisations to come across as responsive and communicative when dealing with them, whether they are within or outside the hospital walls, especially with the emergence of the concept of patient-centric care," said Sash Mukherjee, Senior Market Analyst, IDC Health Insights Asia /Pacific.

All the organisations polled are currently investing in multiple horizontal technologies, and 91 percent of the organisations have invested in healthcare industry-specific solutions. The results of the survey also showed that APEJ healthcare organisations are looking to increase their IT investments in the next twelve months, with 97.4 percent of the respondents indicating an increase in budget for industry-specific solutions.

Security has rightfully emerged as a key technology objective for healthcare executives, with the emergence of both clinical mobility and mobile health, which increases the risk of security breaches as a result of multiple points of data access.

While investments in telecommunications, networking and mobile devices are set to see a steady increase over the next 12 months, IDC Health Insights expects limited uptake of mobility solutions in the region.

"The smart healthcare organisation will leverage on the mobile revolution running through the region and invest in both clinical mobility and mobile health for better clinical outcomes and patient satisfaction," advises Mukherjee.

Highlights of this report include:

• Investments in desktops and notebooks and servers remain on top of the list.

• When it comes to industry-specific solutions, EMR/EHR solutions will see the most investments in the next twelve months.

• A little over 50 percent of the organisations polled are currently outsourcing IT functions, with application management being the most commonly outsourced IT function.