The Healthcare IT Innovation Imperative: Harnessing The Power Of Technology For 21st Century Care Models

The U.S. healthcare system and healthcare systems around the world face seemingly insurmountable challenges. According to Standard & Poor's report Global Aging 2010: An Irreversible Truth, the United Nations estimates that the proportion of the world's population aged 65 and over will more than double by 2050, from 7.6 percent in 2010 to 16.2 percent. By 2050, approximately 1 billion people aged 65 and over will fall under the category of non-working age. The implications of a swiftly aging planet on the economic health, public finances and policymaking of all nations are catastrophic, and the rising cost of caring for a gray population burdened with multiple chronic conditions is at the heart of the crisis. Clinician shortages, a flawed reimbursement model and an outdated, unscalable infrastructure further exacerbate the situation.

Despite what appears to be an inexorable march toward the biggest perfect storm to hit the country and indeed the world, industry innovators and visionary leaders are rising to the occasion with an imperative — to harness the power of technology and data in innovative ways to create and support new care models that are patient centered, quality driven, trusted, cost effective and efficient. Intel convened three leaders representing government and industry to share their organizations' use of emerging information technologies to meet today's challenges, as part of the Intel Healthcare Innovation Summit. The roundtable discussion, The Healthcare IT Innovation Imperative, moderated by Eric Dishman, Intel Fellow and global director of Health Innovation and Policy, explores how these leaders are rethinking healthcare IT for 21st century care.