CloudWave’s Predictions on What 2024 Has in Store for Healthcare IT: Part 1
2023 brought a substantial amount of change to the healthcare industry. From the growing adoption of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and its subsequent challenges, the regulatory landscape shaping cybersecurity requirements and funding, the increasing recognition that security is a shared responsibility across all departments, to the continued growth of multi-cloud architectures, each facet reflects the dynamic nature of the healthcare industry in the face of evolving challenges and opportunities. These trends will continue to accelerate in the year ahead.
Read on for the first part of CloudWave’s 2024 predictions series for what we can expect to see in the healthcare IT landscape.
A New Rationalization of Cybersecurity Resources
There has recently been a subtle shift in the approach towards how healthcare organizations are allocating cybersecurity funding. According to a recent Gartner Report, “Healthcare Provider CIOs Planned 2024 Technology Spend[1],” healthcare organizations still place cybersecurity in the top three funding priorities. However, as healthcare organizations continue investing in cybersecurity, we expect to see them rethinking their approach by focusing on streamlining resources for greater efficiency and risk mitigation.
Historical data shows that the tumultuous events that began in 2020, leading to the widespread shift to remote work and the surge in cyber events in healthcare, led many organizations to make substantial investments in new technologies and tools to shore up their defenses quickly. For example, cybersecurity spending in healthcare grew substantially in response to increased threats, with a majority of respondents (59%) in a 2021 HIMSS Healthcare Cybersecurity Survey reporting an increase in cybersecurity budgets in 2021 compared to 2020.[2]
However, the surge in previous spending created tool redundancies and inefficiencies for many healthcare organizations. In 2024, we predict the industry will reexamine cybersecurity strategies to invest in tools and services that eliminate overlap and help optimize existing technologies that can further advance their cybersecurity posture to protect against new threats.
For example, while cybersecurity remains a top spending priority, hospitals are still working with tightening budgets, giving way to a more rationalized approach to managing cybersecurity resources. Organizations will scrutinize their technology portfolios and reconsider how to invest in cybersecurity—emphasizing the need for efficiency and effectiveness of what they already have versus additional spending. One way to accomplish this may be to outsource cybersecurity skills to a dedicated partner. The goal is to have a comprehensive yet lean cybersecurity program that optimizes each aspect for maximum effectiveness. It’s also essential to have the capability to monitor systems 24/7 to identify threats and respond rapidly. While tools are important, they provide little value without an internal team or qualified partner to monitor and react appropriately.
As we move through 2024, streamlining cybersecurity portfolios for increased efficiency will likely continue as organizations find that a leaner, well-integrated set of tools can often outperform a disjointed array of cybersecurity solutions. This shift towards efficiency is both a cost-saving measure as well as a strategic move to enhance overall security posture. Success depends not on having the latest tools but on implementing the right tools strategically to build a robust, efficient cybersecurity program that can address evolving threats.
In summary, healthcare organizations can strengthen their security posture while managing costs by reevaluating technology investments, eliminating redundancies, outsourcing cybersecurity resources, and optimizing current tools. The future of healthcare cybersecurity is efficiency. Doing more with less will be crucial to risk mitigation and financial stability.
Interested in learning how an outsourced managed cybersecurity service can streamline processes and increase efficiency? Watch this webinar now.
Mike Donahue, vice president, client services, CloudWave
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