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This Month in Healthcare IT: Remarkable News in February
February 2025 witnessed significant developments and challenges in the healthcare IT industry; the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into health systems, the significance of data-driven healthcare solutions and the need for healthcare interoperability became the focal points of this month. In parallel with these developments, healthcare authorities, providers and professionals continue exploring novel ways to enhance clinical operations, patient experience and healthcare delivery through various healthcare information technologies.
At Tiga Healthcare Technologies, we closely monitor the shifting landscape and share key trends, developments, reports and regulations shaping the industry monthly. Through this blog series, we aim to inform healthcare professionals, providers and authorities about IT's impacts on the healthcare ecosystem to support an innovative, equitable and sustainable future.
Here are the top 12 news which contributed to the noteworthy transformation of healthcare IT from February 2025:
1. The Health Level Seven International (HL7) announced the establishment of a new FHIR Accelerator implementation community.
The HL7, a non-profit healthcare interoperability standards organization, plans to create a new FHIR Accelerator implementation community for health device interoperability. This initiative aims to improve patient care through advanced device data use.
This emerging HL7 Device Interoperability FHIR Accelerator community will involve healthcare providers, technology developers, public agencies, clinicians and individuals who will directly benefit from the seamless flow and use of interoperable health devices and applications. These community stakeholders will focus on various use cases including complex clinical care areas like hospital operating rooms and intensive care units along with personal health and wellness devices and applications used in homes. The new community will drive innovation and adoption of FHIR-based interoperability for health devices and applications.
Source: https://www.hl7.org/documentcenter/public/pressreleases/HL7_PRESS_20250213.pdf
2. The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe published a new report, ‘European Health Report 2024: Keeping Health High on the Agenda,’ touching on health data and digital health tools.
The European Health Report 2024, which is released every 3 years as a flagship publication, is a comprehensive source focusing on various elements of the healthcare sector from health systems to health emergency preparedness and response.
According to this report, improving data governance is significant for increasing the quality and timeliness of health data and protecting the data of people using digital health solutions. Due to the significance, all stakeholders must understand the scope, functions and accountability of a health data governance framework. Additionally, the report states that national agencies or specialized bodies must be created and expanded for effective governance of data and digital health along with the important existence of powerful evaluation systems assessing digital health practices’ clinical performance and cost-effectiveness.
3. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) issued new guidance for strengthening the safety, effectiveness and reliability of digital mental health technologies.
The MHRA released new guidance to help manufacturers of digital mental health technologies comply with UK medical device regulations. This guidance covers mental health applications, AI-driven assessments, virtual reality (VR) therapies and digital mental health technologies.
This guidance clarifies how to define a digital mental health technology’s purpose, when a digital mental health technology is considered as a medical device under UK law and how risk classification is determined. The guidance, which is developed by the MHRA with input from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), NHS experts, researchers, healthcare professionals and people using digital mental health technologies, aims to balance accessibility with safety in these technologies. Manufacturers must review the guidance, which intends to address the growing mental health crisis in the UK by focusing on clinical and real-world needs, before bringing products to market.
4. The WHO Regional Office for Europe held a public hearing where the transformative impact of digital health technologies on healthcare systems was discussed.
The WHO Regional Office for Europe organized the third session of its hearing sessions for the exploration of digital and technological innovation’s potential to reshape the healthcare industry on 21 February. This session mainly covered how digitalization can be embedded into policies and strategies to improve European health systems.
Within the European Programme of Work (EPW), this hearing involved discussions focused on AI governance, big data, precision medicine and digital health equity. During the hearing, various countries’ ministers of health shared their perspectives on balancing innovation with accessibility and ethical considerations. The major takeaway was the need for strategic shifts in health systems for the integration of digital tools and AI into healthcare responsibly. Additionally, the maintaining of human-centered care, the optimization of health workforce’s performance, predictive modeling for smarter policymaking and the creation of sustainable health systems via technology emerged as key points during the hearing.
5. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) released new proposals for its HealthTech programme, accelerating the adoption of digital health technologies within the National Health Service (NHS).
The NICE announced major reforms for its HealthTech programme, strengthening the integration of digital health technologies, AI-driven health products, medical devices and diagnostics. This new approach is based on the NHS’ move from analogue to digital, from hospital to community and from treatment to prevention.
The approach will balance digital health technologies’ costs with their benefits for patients and healthcare services by removing the requirement for cost savings. A lifecycle evaluation will be defined to assess these technologies at different stages. In addition to the evaluation of the technologies with a focus on overall cost-effectiveness, the NICE will combine three existing programmes into a single HealthTech programme. Furthermore, multi-tech assessments of similar technologies with the same purpose standard practice will allow the NHS to compare similar products efficiently. These proposals support the NHS’ shift towards digital and person-centered care.
6. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published a report, ‘Does Healthcare Deliver?’, offering a perspective for the assessment of healthcare systems.
The OECD report, titled ‘Does Healthcare Deliver?’, presents the results of an international survey comprising primary care patients aged 45 years and older with a focus on chronic conditions. By utilizing the results coming from more than 107,000 patients in 19 countries, healthcare systems can address the needs and priorities of patients efficiently.
According to the report, digital tools in primary care prepare the ground for patient-centered care which is necessary for effective chronic disease management. These tools improve communication and coordination between relevant stakeholders and reduce errors. For example, integrated electronic health records (EHRs) make vital patient information accessible across healthcare providers and patients, eliminating the need for patients to repeat their medical history. In addition to the use of EHRs, the report emphasizes that 54% of the responders have booked primary care appointments online, proving the growing usage of electronic appointment systems. The report mainly recommends the offering of more accessible digital tools, the improvement of the interoperability of EHRs and the enhancement of digital health literacy among older and less educated populations.
Source: https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/does-healthcare-deliver_c8af05a5-en.html
7. New Zealand launched its first Public Health Surveillance Strategy for the effective collection and use of public health information.
New Zealand’s first Public Health Surveillance Strategy aims to better protect the citizens against health threats by improving data collection and coordination.
This strategy includes the use of population specific data like laboratory test results and wastewater testing, the refinement of surveillance of public health threats beyond communicable diseases and the expansion of methods used during the COVID-19 response. It also highlights that an effective public health laboratory system has a strategic importance to public health surveillance. The public health laboratory system comprises a network of all laboratories, health agencies and cross-sector agencies (including universities and sector experts) that, together, provide public health laboratory services for New Zealand. With the actions which will be taken by ensuring data privacy and security, the country remarks that data-driven and targeted health policies will be created for better public health outcomes.
Source: https://www.health.govt.nz/news/new-approach-to-strengthening-public-health-information-gathering
8. McKinsey & Company released a report focusing on the significance of digital healthcare adoption in Netherlands for decreasing healthcare costs.
McKinsey & Company published a report explaining that the Dutch healthcare system encounters rising costs and severe staff shortages. According to the report, large-scale digital healthcare adoption can reduce healthcare costs and eliminate staff shortage in the country.
This report expresses that using digital health technologies and generative AI (GenAI) can unlock €22 billion in savings per year by enhancing the quality and accessibility of healthcare in Netherlands. To achieve this, the report recommends five key actions: Adopting a ‘patient-first, digital-first’ mindset, implementing large-scale digital use cases, establishing federal data sharing with common architecture, creating better funding mechanisms and ensuring centralized decision-making and intensive collaboration.
Source: https://www.mckinsey.com/nl/our-insights/digitale-zorg-in-nederland-van-evolutie-naar-revolutie
9. The State of Compliance Survey, conducted by the ECHAlliance, demonstrates digital health innovators’ ideas on compliance challenges and prioritized standards.
The ECHAlliance conducted a survey, the State of Compliance Survey, which comprised digital health innovators who identified the top compliance standards for 2025. According to the survey data, the most popular standard is ISO 42001, which focuses on AI management systems, and ISO 27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus are following the lead.
The survey results show that 55% of the respondents consider ISO 42001 the most important standard because of the growing adoption of AI in healthcare. ISO 27001 is selected as the second most critical standard by 53% of the respondents while 52% highlight Cyber Essentials Plus for the protection from common cyber threats. These standards are followed by ISO 9001 by 40%, HIPAA by 37% and SOC 2 by 29% of the respondents. The findings indicate the increasing emphasis on AI governance and regulation, data security and international compliance in the healthcare sector as compliance priorities.
Source: https://echalliance.com/news/digital-health-compliance-trends-top-standards-for-2025/
10. The WHO released a technical document focusing on the use of digital technologies to increase affordable access to health care in Estonia.
The paper from the WHO, ‘Using Digital Technologies to Make Access to Medicines and Dental Care More Affordable: A Case Study from Estonia,’ explains how Estonia improved access to medicines and dental care through digital technologies.
According to the paper, Estonia enabled real-time data exchange between healthcare providers and pharmacies via the deployment of an electronic prescription (e-prescription) system. Also, the country automated dental care benefits to reduce the administrative burden and optimize the business process. The Estonian case study, which emphasizes the role of integrated digital health financing solutions in enhancing affordability, offers valuable insights for other countries looking to digitalize their systems for improving healthcare access and delivery.
Source: https://iris.who.int/bitstream/handle/10665/380496/9789240105911-eng.pdf?sequence=1
11. The Emirates Health Services (EHS) develops new software, ‘Footstep Insights Solution,’ to improve outpatient appointment management.
The EHS is currently developing new healthcare software called ‘Footstep Insights Solution’ to enhance outpatient appointment management. During the development process, advanced AI algorithms are created to analyze and offer real-time patient movement data like footsteps.
Through Footstep Insights, the EHS aims to reduce long patient wait times, minimize high no-show rates, optimize resource allocation and streamline patient flow. The software will address key challenges encountered in outpatient appointment management by predicting patient volumes during peak hours, preventing overcrowding and understaffing issues. D. Sara AlShaya, the director of data and statistics at the EHS, will speak about the software’s development process during the ‘‘Footstep Insights: A Healthcare Analytics Solution for Optimizing Outpatient Care’’ session at the HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exhibition on 4 March in Las Vegas.
12. Experts from Finland and Estonia convened at the Embassy of Finland in Tallinn to discuss AI’s role in healthcare.
On 4 February, government officials, healthcare professionals and AI innovators from Finland and Estonia met in Tallinn to share their insights about the AI’s capabilities in advancing patient care, streamlining hospital operations and addressing regulatory challenges.
The event became home to discussions on AI-assisted medical documentation for minimizing doctors’ administrative workload, real-time AI-powered interpretation for healthcare consultations, AI-powered tools for summarizing patient information quickly and AI-driven early cancer screening initiatives. During the gathering, participants emphasized the need for structured healthcare data, faster regulatory approval processes and cross-border collaboration between Finland and Estonia.
Source: https://echalliance.com/news/how-is-ai-shaping-the-future-of-healthcare-in-finland-and-estonia/
These developments show that the adoption of digital technologies in healthcare is crucial for better patient outcomes and healthcare delivery. As Tiga Healthcare Technologies, we always underscore the need for digital transformation in healthcare and develop innovative digital healthcare information technologies.
As the OECD pointed out the benefits of EHR use, we support national healthcare infrastructures with our Personal Health Record (PHR) which enables patients to take more active role in their health management via 24/7 access to their EHRs. In addition to the PHR, we offer our Central e-Prescription which connects healthcare providers, pharmacies and patients to streamline the prescription process, similar to the better real-time data exchange between relevant stakeholders highlighted in the Estonian case study from the WHO.
To create a more patient-centered and efficient healthcare system, another important point is healthcare interoperability, which is the main agenda topic of the HL7’s new FHIR Accelerator community. At Tiga Healthcare Technologies, we consolidate our commitment to interoperability and seamless data flow between different systems through our FHIR Stack and other interoperability products. Furthermore, we recognize the importance of short waiting times and effective resource allocation across healthcare facilities and deliver our e-Appointment, which enables patients to book appointments online with a few clicks, similar to the EHS’ new appointment management software.
Our health information technology products and solutions aim to transform healthcare services by enriching patient engagement, healthcare professionals’ productivity and coordination between all stakeholders. Our information technologies include Healthcare Interoperability, Patient Engagement, Prescription & Medicine Management, Drug Traceability, AI & Analytics, Population Health Management, Personalized Healthcare and Hospital Information System.
Let’s shape the future together by accelerating the digital transformation of healthcare with innovative solutions, as always!
