Technology in healthcare requires more than innovation alone
How do we ensure that technology becomes a natural part of care and support? Not as a one-off project or temporary pilot, but as a sustainable enhancement of the day-to-day work of professionals and people in need of care. This question was central to the closing event‘Samen Slimmer: Skills Development & Healthcare Technology’ on 22 April. Healthcare and welfare organisations, educational institutions, businesses and innovation partners engaged in dialogue about the regional challenge of technology adoption.
The‘Samen Slimmer’ project has been made possible in part by joint funding from the Human Capital Agreement and Health Valley. The Human Capital Agreement encourages smarter collaboration within the Health cluster to address the labour market challenges of today and tomorrow. Technology can help in this regard, but only if organisations also invest in learning, development and change in the workplace.
Regional cooperation on learning and development
To this end, the Human Capital Agreement promotes regional learning and development, including through the involvement of ROC Nijmegen’s Tech@doptie practoraat and HAN University of Applied Sciences’ Technology for Health lectoraat. They help to link practical questions from healthcare organisations to knowledge development, education and innovation. In this way, they work together on issues relating to technological innovations that contribute to smarter working practices in healthcare and social care.
From experimentation to structural embedding
During the meeting, it became clear that there is not necessarily a shortage of technology. The challenge lies mainly in its sustainable application in practice. Innovations often start out promising, but disappear after the pilot phase. Teams want to, but lack time, support and a clear place in the work process. A common language and clear agreements on cooperation are also still too often lacking.
The main conclusion of the afternoon: Tech@doption is not a technology issue, but an organisational and change task. This calls for a movement from separate projects to structural embedding, from experimenting to securing and from individual learning to regional cooperation.
Building tomorrow's care together
The next step is therefore not more innovation, but better implementation of proven solutions. This requires space: for healthcare employees to learn to use technology, for clients to move along and for organisations to actively share knowledge, experiences and practical questions.
Within Lifeport Regio Arnhem Nijmegen, a scalable ecosystem in which care, welfare, education, government and companies work together more intensively on practical issues is being built. The energy and recognition during the meeting were great. Now it is a matter of making choices, connecting and taking action.
Would you like to think along or join the next steps around technology in health and well-being? The desk for questions and challenges is open via Tech@doptie.
