The consulting firm Deloitte has recently prepared a recent study that examined the various digital technologies and their progress in the German healthcare system compared with six other European countries. According to the study „Shaping the Future of European Healthcare“, 400 physicians from various specialist areas and medical personnel were surveyed, 47 percent of whom work in private hospitals, day clinics and practices; a further 43 percent, including nurses, work in public institutions at various levels of experience. According to the survey, the corona pandemic is seen as a digitization accelerator, as well as four billion euros in federal and state aid under the Hospital Future Act (KHZG), which may in future help to drive digitization forward, because there is still plenty of room for improvement in Germany. While countries such as Denmark and the Netherlands are already very familiar with telemedicine applications, online appointment booking and also in the e-prescription area, things are running a little sluggish in Germany. 86 percent of German physicians and medical staff trust digital achievements, if you follow the study, but in many places do not always use them. According to Deloitte, the application and use of digital technologies are most popular in administrative tasks. Digital medical records are used by 75 percent of respondents, digital rosters by 52 percent and specific applications for hospital staff by 44 percent. However, almost all respondents see advantages in their use, such as (cost) efficiency and optimum care for the sick and elderly population. In contrast, the telemedical care sector is generally used by only 30 percent of all respondents, although 64 percent also see advantages here. Online appointment bookings are far ahead with 38 percent of all uses; 63 percent find the use of online appointments advantageous. However, the study participants feel that the hurdles for the use of digital technologies are too high. Organizational hurdles, bureaucracy, excessive costs and difficulties in finding the right technology are cited by more than half or just under half as reasons for reluctant use. In addition, too little information and support is also criticized, which is why, for example, only seven percent of all healthcare players use artificial intelligence (AI) and four percent use virtual reality (VR). Many of the participants also estimate the future situation in such a way that there is still a long way to go before the digitalized medical organization is complete; 54 percent believe that it will be possible in five years, while 38 percent have a lower expectation horizon, which is eight to ten years.
