As healthcare leaders and stakeholders gathered in chilly Nashville for ViVE 2025, one theme dominated conversations throughout panels, networking occasions, and off-the-record discussions: it’s time to show it.
From promise to proof – the demand for tangible ROI
Healthcare isn’t any stranger to daring claims. We’ve been listening to guarantees of improved workflow, higher outcomes, and enhanced effectivity in conversations for years. However lately, we’re seeing a shift — there’s a rising push for extra than simply the potential of an answer. Leaders are demanding proof of real-world outcomes that reveal ROI earlier than they decide to new options, or, even simply to think about renewing current product contracts.
The message at ViVE was loud and clear: organizations aren’t making picks based mostly on potential alone. They need to see issues in motion. They need extra dialogue on the influence on workflows and folks. They usually need to have the ability to verify with their friends. Distributors that again their claims with documented, quantifiable outcomes will stand out on this new setting.
Pricing and coverage headwinds
With evolving financial pressures and political dynamics, many well being methods are adopting extra conservative approaches to expertise choices. I’ve mentioned earlier than that there’s a widening hole between well being methods that may ‘fail quick’ and people that may’t afford to fail in any respect, and the uncertainty from each a income and expense aspect goes to shift extra methods into the latter class. Elevated scrutiny means consumers are extending the gross sales cycle and exercising extra diligence, deeper analysis processes, and extra accountable contracts tied to outcomes.
The potential for modifications in federal and state rules, reimbursement fashions, and AI governance is creating some hesitancy. Regardless of how promising applied sciences are, many are weighing long-term implications and ready for the mud to settle earlier than closing the deal.
There’s nonetheless some strain to not miss the boat on rising applied sciences, like ambient listening. A panelist from a session I moderated famous that considerably decreased charges may make these instruments accessible for smaller, extra cash-strapped organizations. With documentation being a primary concern for a lot of clinicians, it’s no shock to see ambient listening entrance and middle this yr.
Balancing daring concepts with pragmatism
Regardless of warning, the demand for innovation stays excessive and on full show on the present flooring. Leaders acknowledge that standing nonetheless and letting this wave go them by isn’t an choice. And, they perceive the very actual chance of being left behind by their opponents, significantly within the face of ongoing workforce shortages, operational inefficiencies, and rising prices.
This pressure between the drive to innovate and an more and more risk-averse setting forces distributors to steadiness daring concepts with sensible implementation. The important differentiators I heard from well being system leaders at ViVE have been interoperability, regulatory readiness, and workflow integrations that take issues off the plates of care groups, not add extra.
The following decade of AI
Whereas ViVE offered speedy challenges and alternatives, practically each panel discovered themselves asking the identical query, “The place are we going with AI over the subsequent few years?” There have been a justifiable share of ethical and moral discussions which might be positive to proceed because the reliance on AI continues to develop. However maybe the most important shift was the popularity that AI isn’t a characteristic of a product (regardless of each product claiming to have AI options). Well being methods are beginning to acknowledge that time options leveraging AI are proliferating extra technical debt throughout functions and knowledge. Extra are beginning to focus on fundamental infrastructure and knowledge must help a number of AI functions.
And gaps in belief haven’t gone away. AI governance is a rising precedence. As adoption accelerates, distributors should present audit instruments that supply transparency into decision-making processes and knowledge sources. Embracing AI as a journey with iterations requires higher monitoring, validation, and ongoing compliance, and these are the areas distributors might want to concentrate on to safe and preserve long-term relationships with well being methods.
What’s subsequent? Turning perception Into motion
ViVE 2025 was a actuality verify for a lot of. The conversations in Nashville strengthened the concept that whereas innovation stays important, distributors should navigate the superb steadiness between daring concepts and real-world implementation, demonstrating not simply promise however tangible outcomes.
Because the trade strikes ahead, the themes from ViVE — interoperability, regulatory readiness, workflow integration, and AI governance — will proceed to form decision-making. The approaching years will check whether or not digital well being options can really ship on their potential, not simply in concept however with a measurable, lasting influence.
Jason Taylor is the SVP of Development at Panda Well being, with 30 years of expertise driving adoption of transformative applied sciences. Initially from Canada, Jason shortly developed a ardour for the potential of the U.S. Healthcare trade and has spent the final eight years working with distinguished well being methods on digital options to enhance entry, expertise and outcomes.
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