The software-as-a-service (SaaS) business in the healthcare industry is on the cusp of an explosion. It is becoming increasingly essential since it can improve patient experiences and increase administrative efficiencies.
Per a recent study by Grand View Research, the market for healthcare SaaS is anticipated to expand at a CAGR of 19.5% and exceed $50 Billion by 2028.
It is believed that the growing adoption of cloud computing in the healthcare business is the primary driver behind this ambitious yet fully achievable projection.
This may appear to be self-evident in light of the growing popularity of SaaS across various sectors. Still, the uses of SaaS in the healthcare sector are particularly promising.
Clinical information systems (PACS, EHR, telehealth, etc.) and nonclinical information systems (billing, supply chain, patient interaction) are also included in the category of SaaS apps.
The benefits that SaaS may supply on the front of healthcare administration assist one in comprehending the massive market potential.
For instance, software as a service (SaaS) can be an enormous help in the following:
- managing the costs associated with healthcare information technology by delivering improved flexibility,
- increased ROI,
- a more significant competitive advantage, and
- lower costs associated with software deployment.
SaaS can give the required monetary edge for the expansion of health enterprises. Providers are under constant pressure to manage profitability due to the emergence of new business models in the healthcare industry, and SaaS can help alleviate this pressure.
Experts in the field predict that software as a service (SaaS) will soon become indispensable in the healthcare industry with its reduced costs and greater scalability.
The use of SaaS solutions by healthcare providers would lead to an increase in revenue and an improvement in internal operations.
By coordinating application delivery services across data centers located all over the world, SaaS solutions that are HIPAA-compliant assist save time throughout the deployment process.
Let's look at some important trends in healthcare SaaS that are going to transform the healthcare industry completely:
Artificial Intelligence
Because it has so many innovative uses in the commercial sector, artificial intelligence (AI) is poised to become the industry standard.
The incorporation of AI may lead to the development of self-learning and autonomy in SaaS platforms. In the healthcare industry, the adoption of AI-based solutions is commonplace.
AI in business processes by many successful technology companies has increased productivity and efficiency. Experts believe 81 percent of companies have already begun developing artificial intelligence technology. (1)
The application of AI in machine learning (ML) & natural language processing (NLP) is having a transformative impact on healthcare delivery.
This AI automation might be of assistance to healthcare SaaS companies in several different ways. The first thing it does is fix the security issues.
Having the ability to recognize trends makes it much simpler to find potentially dangerous situations. The fact that there is a self-recovery component that can help in the process of recovering crucial data is the most beneficial feature.
The discharge process is being helped along by artificial intelligence's efforts to streamline and automate it.
The discharge process is one of the administrative workflows that can benefit from organizations implementing SaaS-based solutions, which can help them take the initial steps toward leveraging the potential of artificial intelligence.
Identifying patterns of human speech and voice control is another area in which the NLP component can assist. The fulfillment of patient requests and the improvement of individualization are both possible with the help of software of this kind.
Machine learning (ML), which is another component, is something that many companies include in their customer service apps. The employment of chatbots can be beneficial in a variety of contexts.
According to an analysis by Crunchbase, venture capitalists have invested more than 800 million dollars in firms that offer a chatbot that includes health capabilities (2). SaaS with AI integration allows high levels of overall responsiveness and the capability to make accurate projections at lightning-fast speeds.
Multiple Cloud Systems
As predicted by industry experts, there will be a 19.6% increase in businesses that use software hosted on the cloud. Leveraging the power of multi-cloud solutions is one of the most effective ways for modern SaaS trends to assist healthcare companies in resolving some of their most challenging issues.
When using a multi-cloud strategy, software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies can host their applications in the same geographic region as their end users. This not only makes things more cost-effective for healthcare providers but also helps to minimize the high prices of bandwidth between regions.
Using several cloud providers can improve a healthcare provider's capacity to store, manage, analyze, and protect vital patient data and boost the provider's capacity to handle patient data overall.
Many cloud service providers are used for backup and recovery in the event of a catastrophe. The management of many clouds can be set up as a SaaS platform subscription.
Concentrated Focus on Safety and Assurance
The protection of patient's personal information is a primary concern for medical professionals all around the world. Concerns have been raised regarding the security of cloud-based data storage in light of the digitization and hosting of patient health records in the cloud. Establishing a security model capable of monitoring the traffic and data coming to and coming from the cloud is important.
There are advantages to adopting a strategy that makes use of many clouds. However, it might complicate security situations.
You may encounter such issues more frequently when businesses transition from comprehending Infrastructure as a Service (laaS) on a single cloud to comprehending how PaaS and SaaS might perform in conjunction with one another.
The concerns regarding the security of data are quite real. Because of this, businesses will have an ever-increasing demand for cloud security in 2022 and beyond.
Vertical SaaS
Vertical software as a service is growing in popularity in 2022, making it another fascinating invention. Because it may be utilized in any industry or sector, horizontal software as a service (SaaS) is less tailored to the particular requirements and expectations of the industry for which it is intended to provide solutions.
As a result, it takes a broader approach, in contrast to vertical SaaS, which takes a more simplified approach to the functioning of a particular industry.
Vertical software as a service typically focuses on specific industries or fields, such as the healthcare industry.
It's possible that taking a vertical approach might be beneficial to the development of supplier chains or lighthouse customers. It is much simpler to concentrate on certain problems and develop flexible solutions to satisfy the requirements of organizations while also incorporating professional experience.
Vertical software as a service (SaaS), which offers customized solutions, will become an increasingly prominent focus in the B2B healthcare IT sector.
Retail analytics software, modern logistics analytics software, healthcare business intelligence software, and patient engagement solutions are all examples of vertical software as a service. Because they may be tailored to meet individual needs, the benefits of specialization are more cost-efficient.
Conclusion
When working in an industry undergoing a digital transformation, two of the most important concerns are the increasing expenses of healthcare IT and protecting patients' privacy.
Especially in healthcare, software as a service (SaaS) solutions has the potential to play an important part in addressing these challenges.
People are becoming more aware of the viability, effectiveness, and security of collecting and keeping data in the cloud and the numerous advantages offered by SaaS-based solutions. In addition, people are becoming more aware of the various advantages of SaaS-based solutions.
This has kicked off the beginning of a shift in the application of technology in a more general sense within a managed environment that is both capable of changing safely and of helping humanity.
