INNOVATION & TECHNOLOGY
Eight must-haves of digital transformation The success factors for aged care This is an exciting time as the aged care reforms are taking effect – and digital transformation will be essential for any organisation seeking to remain financially sustainable.
The goal drives decisions and sets up the measures needed to succeed.
Digital transformation is not new. Industries such as finance, manufacturing and retail are all examples of where digital transformation has reshaped entire businesses, helped improve efficiencies, scaled and improved profitability.
3. Don’t let the technology dictate how
The delays of the health and aged care sectors to use many of the now well-proven technologies are understandable. We are dealing with people’s lives so there is no room for error on critical issues that could jeopardise safety. There are also compliance and regulatory requirements, including security, privacy and confidentially, that are essential and non-negotiable. But we can learn a lot from the industries that have gone before us. 1. Digital transformation is a journey and not a project Successful companies embed their digital adoption as an ongoing process. When a digital process is seen as a project with an end date, it is likely to not be sustained and maintained.
It helps to make it SMART – specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.
There are many exciting devices available with many features. However, this doesn’t last and the novelty of the tech will eventually wear off if there isn’t a clear link to why the technology is in place and how it achieves the organisational goal. 4. Choose the best technology that will help to achieve that goal How does the choice of technology now help the organisation for the future? A formalised technology assessment process in the transformation plan will help align the technology to the goal. Consider the data provided, security, privacy and compliance to the sector requirements, user experience, deployment ease, integration, reliability, value, and interoperability with existing or other planned systems.
A good example is the implementation of electronic health record software. After the initial training and the celebration that it is now ‘live’, the process doesn’t stop. There will need to be a plan to support new updated versions and improve compliance features requiring further training, organisational policy and process adjustments, and updates to the software, a designated person to oversee the new system and an appropriate budget. 2. Understand the organisational goal and design for that A single clear goal is critical. It makes it easy to gain support from your team if there is a clear vision and why. 99