Covid-19 pandemic has a great impact on the world. Millions of people are fighting the virus at the moment, and despite our technological progress, thus far, we have made very little headway with fighting coronavirus. Healthcare workers have overbearing workloads, and there aren’t enough resources. To win the battle with the pandemic, they are asking for better technology.
SOTI, an IoT management provider, did a survey among home care workers and nurses. These surveys were done in the UK, France, Germany, Sweden, Australia, Canada, and the U.S. Its purpose was to understand the degree of technological advancement of these countries, as well as the key mobility challenges they are experiencing on the frontline. SOTI’s interest was in how well their organizations are holding up during the pandemic.
The survey’s name is Critical Technology for Critical Care: The State of Mobility in Healthcare 2020/21 Report. According to it, 55% of respondents believe that investment in new or better technology is necessary to save lives. However, that figure rose to 68% among healthcare workers in the United Kingdom.
Furthermore, 63% of the respondents stated that they experience IT issues during their normal working week. As a result, they spend only a third of their time actually helping patients. 54% of healthcare workers noted that trying to use their employer’s technology wastes valuable time, which they could have spent on attending to patients. They also added that they spend 44 % of their time helping patients. In contrast, they spent the rest on activities like accessing and updating patient records, as well as recording information for administrative purposes.
How did the coronavirus impact on healthcare workers’ working process?
The research studied the impact of COVID-19 as well, asking about how many healthcare providers have turned to tech to continue treating patients while also enforcing social distancing measures.
33 % of healthcare workers stated that their employer introduced new systems and technology during the pandemic. However, only 22% of cases were technology systems prepared to manage any situation related to coronavirus.
According to 26 % of participants, their existing systems and technology have been unable to cope with the situation. 73 % agree that their employer needs to invest in better technology to prepare for any future health crises.
Healthcare budgets have been stretching consistently, while the expectations are higher than ever due to the pandemic. So, it’s of little surprise that frontline healthcare workers are coming up against significant barriers – according to Stefan Spendrup, SOTI’s VP of Sales for Northern and Western Europe.
According to SOTI’s research, healthcare workers are wasting time on admin tasks. But they could be simplified with integrated mobile technology. 68 % of UK healthcare workers agreeing that better technology could help improve patient care. With this in mind, it is clear that it’s time for smarter technology adoption.
