2018 has finally arrived, and healthcare companies’ executives from both small and big firms have hit the ground running. With technological artificial intelligence and new drugs in the industry, below are 6 healthcare predictions for 2018.

2. Healthcare Predictions for 2018
With the ever-evolving policies, processes, capabilities and complexity impacting the
sector, smart health care is not going to come easy. Clinicians, usually, have difficulty
coordinating appointments and procedures, sharing test results, and involving patients in their
treatment plan. In other words, healthcare providers may be working hard but are they working
smart ? How is health care overcoming the obstacles of the hospital walls? This 2018 outlook
reviews the current state of the health care sector; explores trends and issues impacting health
care providers, governments, patients; and suggests considerations for stakeholders as they
seek to deliver high-quality, cost-efficient, and smart health care.
1. Patients will design even the most complex healthcare technology – at least by
inspiration
MRI and mammography exams can help save lives, but patients often avoid them due to
anxiety and fear of pain. A number of advances in technology now point to a new wave of
patient-centric technology, redesigned from the very start to reflect what matters most to
the patient – even for some of the most difficult and sensitive exams, such as for the brain or
breasts. A new mammogram became the industry’s first system with a remote-control
device that allows women to adjust their own compression during the exam under the guidance
of a technologist – four out of five patients who received their mammogram found it improved
the comfort significantly. In an MRI, patients traditionally have been required to lie still under a
heavy contraption. Now the industry is talking about a completely redesigned coil called AIR
Technology that turns this traditionally bulky covering into a blanket that is 60 percent lighter
than the conventional. Both technologies are expected to be installed in more clinics and
hospitals across the world in 2018.
2. Accessible and secure data management will be a growing concern
The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) recently issued a call to
action for the nation’s health sector. Aimed at encouraging health policy changes the document
calls for interoperability with a focus on accessible and secure data exchange. To answer this

3. call, the healthcare community will take a step forward and implement protocolsand trusted
exchange frameworks that improve the consistency, accessibility, and security of electronic
health information exchange.
3. Strategically moving from volume to value
The health care industry is participating in risk-bearing, coordinated care models and continues
to move away from the traditional fee-for-service (FFS) system. Stakeholders are moving from
volume to value through reform policies, programs promoting operational efficiency,
technology use, and addressing the social determinants of health.
4. The patient experience will be paramount
With real-time data available at their fingertips, patients have even greater expectations of
convenience and efficiency. Providers have to be extremely proactive by engaging patients and
creating high-quality experiences. This means giving patients easy access to forms and health
information, putting necessary safeguards in place to protect patient information, and keeping
wait times down.
5. Responding to health policy and complex regulations
Digital health care technology solutions addressing better diagnostics and more personalized
therapeutic tools are leading to the challenge of data protection. The trends in data
management and security include cognitive computing, cloud-based, interoperable electronic
health records, and Internet of Things (IoT). Cybersecurity and data risk management continue
to be front and center, especially with patients taking more control of their health, and wanting
reliability to their data.
While these technologies have often been talked about as hypothetical, 2018 may be
the nexus point in which they become more important and common across the industry.