Earlier, the healthcare industry was far away from the use of technology. But in recent years, technological advances in data storage and management have transformed the sector from the bottom. Today, medical professionals easily understand how to secure susceptible data, however, there is still some progress yet to be made.

So, here’s a question what impact will these shifts have on the way healthcare field research, treat patients, and analyse data? Let’s look at the trends that are shaping medical data management.

Healthcare Data Security in the Digital Age

For the healthcare sector, privacy and security have always been supreme while handling medical data. Besides, the digital age comes with unique problems in recent years. Considering reports, over 15 million patient records were compromised in last year alone. Some other data shows that the number of compromised records this year has already surpassed last year’s number. Therefore, these data breaches create the need for better and improved security significantly. Albeit, there is no doubt that technology plays a vital role in securing data. In this regard, Cloud Computing is one, helping medical professionals to collect, store, and secure patients’ vulnerable information.

Big Data Transforms Healthcare

Healthcare organizations generate a massive volume of data every day that requires an enormous system which is capable to store data securely. Here, Big data can portray a significant role as it has the potential to store huge amount of data and its analysing capability. In recent years, Big Data has slowly moved into the healthcare field and is expected to change in years to come, due in part to an improvement in big data analytical tools and more intelligent diagnostic equipment. The technology amassed health data from various sources – Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Medical imaging, Genomic sequencing, Payor records, Pharmaceutical research, Wearables, Medical devices, among others.

Advancements in Interoperability

Previously, the healthcare industry has a lack of interoperability. Healthcare centers and medical institutions have not always been able to easily exchange data but making care more unwieldy. But in the digital age, this trend has been changing rapidly. By 2015, more than 80% of hospitals in the US proved capable of data sharing with other organizations, enhancing the convenience of both healthcare professionals and patients. Interoperability is more than just convenient, assisting medical professionals to move closer to a fully integrated, seamless healthcare experience where patients and their medical providers have the information.

Modern Rules and Regulations

Regulation portrays a major role in the healthcare industry and healthcare insurance coverage. There are several regulatory bodies protecting the public from a number of health risks and providing many programs for public health and welfare. Regulation has been introduced in response to the need for medical data management. For example, the 2016 21^st Century Cures Act that sought to facilitate data flow to upsurge the clearance of medical processes and treatments. This type of regulation is developed and executed not only by all levels of government but by private organizations as well. Regulations and standards are very necessary to ensure compliance and provide safe health care to every individual who accesses the system. Therefore, governments are likely to have a much bigger impact on the medical data management field in the coming years.