Artificial Intelligence (AI) and blockchain stand out as the technologies poised to best support the optimization of electronic health records (EHRs), according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

A recent poll published in GlobalData’s report, ‘Electronic Health Records – Physician Perspective Report’, revealed that AI (30%) was noted as the innovation that is best positioned to support the development of EHRs, followed by blockchain with 18% and wearable technologies with 13%.

Urte Jakimaviciute, Senior Director of Market Research at GlobalData, comments: “EHR data is real-world evidence. When combined with technologies such as AI and cloud, as well as data analytics, EHR data could be used to generate real-time insights about patients’ health status, leading to more timely interventions. As such, powering EHRs with data-driven technologies like AI may also result in faster and more accurate diagnoses or access to treatment, support shared decision-making, and encourage individuals to manage their own health.”

Technologies have a wide application in domains like healthcare. They can not only revolutionize data collection and analysis, but also enhance security and data transfer. In a separate poll that GlobalData conducted on EHRs, the respondents highlighted data privacy and confidentiality issues as some of the most common barriers associated with the adoption of EHRs.

Jakimaviciute continues: “The rise of data-driven technologies in healthcare not only has the potential to increase the standard of care for patients, but also raises concerns over the use of patient data, such as privacy, confidentiality, and security. As more healthcare data is stored, the potential damage caused by any security breaches becomes higher.

“Transparency and interoperability have been major barriers to EHR adoption and integration, and blockchain technology might be the breakthrough that the industry needs. Blockchain-provided interoperability could enable providers to securely share patient medical records with each other, regardless of provider locations or the relationships between providers.”