Confidence in Artificial Intelligence Increases as Health Industry Leaders Project Faster Return on Investment, Signal Growin...
October 27 2020 - 9:14AM
Business Wire
- Third Annual Optum Survey on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in
Health Care finds 59% of health care executives expect a return on
their AI investments in under three years—compared to 31% in
2018
- 95% of health care executives now looking to hire business and
analytic staff with experience developing AI
- Executives leveraging AI to enhance virtual health capabilities
and accelerate research to help alleviate pressures of the
pandemic
Health care executives today believe artificial intelligence
(AI) will deliver value for the industry faster than previously
thought, according to a new survey of 500 senior health care
executives representing leading hospitals, health plans, life
sciences and employers.
The third annual Optum Survey on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in
Health Care found that 59% of executives surveyed expect their
organizations will see a full return on their AI investments in
under three years, nearly double the 31% of leaders surveyed in
2018 who expected to break even that quickly.
Further, health care executives’ confidence in AI’s ability to
deliver operational efficiencies or improved clinical performance
increases as their organizations progress on the maturity curve:
among the respondents who identified as being in the late stages of
AI deployment, 57% indicated they would reach their ROI in less
than two years. Expectations for faster return on AI investments
grew even among those in earlier stages of deployment, indicating
growing confidence in the technology.
In addition, leaders across industry segments expect to see
tangible cost savings from their AI investments faster – an average
of 3.6 years in this year’s survey, down from 4.7 years in 2019 and
5.3 years in 2018.
“This year’s findings further confirm our belief in the
potential of AI to deliver insights and operational efficiencies
that unlock better performance across health care,” said Robert
Musslewhite, chief executive officer of OptumInsight. “It is
encouraging to see so many organizations express confidence in AI’s
ability to facilitate the pursuit of our industry’s shared goals:
better health outcomes, better consumer experiences, and less
physician burnout—all at a lower total cost of care.”
AI’s Rise Necessitates Hiring Skilled Talent
In broadly confirming AI’s strategic value, 95% of health care
executives said hiring talent with experience developing AI is a
priority, with 66% of executives in late stages of AI deployment
strongly agreeing, compared to 42% in early and 31% in middle
stages.
In addition to building AI competency itself, the ability to act
upon AI-driven recommendations is critical. To that end, 92% of the
surveyed executives expect that their staff who receive AI-driven
insights will understand how the AI works. That finding signals the
widespread need for knowledge about analytics, predictions and data
streams outside of an organization’s traditional information
technology or informatics teams.
“The need for skilled analytic talent in health care has never
been greater,” said Steve Griffiths, chief operating officer of
Optum Enterprise Analytics. “The growing strategic importance of AI
means that organizations need to ensure access to this skillset,
either by growing their own analytic teams or seeking out
experienced partners.”
Top Applications for AI
The survey also found executives leveraging AI to enhance
virtual health capabilities and accelerate research to help
alleviate pressures of the pandemic. The top three applications
health care executives plan to tap AI for include:
- Monitoring data from Internet of Things devices, such as
wearable technology (40%);
- Accelerating research for new therapeutic or clinical
discoveries (37%); and
- Assigning codes for accurate diagnosis and reimbursement
(37%).
All three applications pose advantages in the current and
post-COVID-19 world: AI can identify signals and trends from
internet-connected remote patient monitoring devices, enabling more
complete virtual health offerings; AI can help prioritize potential
investigative targets for treatments or vaccines; and automating
business processes can enable organizations to operate efficiently
even with limited resources.
To learn more about the 2020 Optum Survey on AI in Health Care,
download the Special Report today.
About Optum
Optum is a leading information and technology-enabled health
services business dedicated to helping make the health system work
better for everyone. With more than 165,000 people worldwide, Optum
delivers intelligent, integrated solutions that help to modernize
the health system and improve overall population health. Optum is
part of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH). For more information, visit
www.Optum.com.
About OptumInsight
OptumInsight, part of Optum, connects the health care system
with trusted services, analytics and platforms that make clinical
and administrative processes valuable, easy, and efficient.
OptumInsight works with health systems, physicians, health plans,
state governments and life sciences companies, as well as the rest
of Optum and UnitedHealth Group, to set strategy, reduce
administrative costs, drive action from data, improve clinical
performance and transform operations.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201027005725/en/
Gwen Holliday Optum 202-549-3429 gwen.m.holliday@optum.com
UnitedHealth (NYSE:UNH)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
UnitedHealth (NYSE:UNH)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024