Digitalization in the Russian healthcare: barriers to digital maturity

Abstract

Over the last 20 years a significant progress has been made in the use of digital technologies in the Russian healthcare: a widespread introduction of health information systems (HIS), work with big data, and use of artificial intelligence. Hopes are pinned on IT technologies; it is expected that they will simplify healthcare activities, as well as take the quality of medical care to a new level. Ultimately, it will contribute to a better quality of life for the population. However, certain internal and external factors slow the advance of digital technologies, creating barriers to digital maturity in healthcare. Imperfection of the legal and regulatory framework and insufficient funding of healthcare and innovation have a negative impact on the rate of development and translation of new technologies into medicine. The article considers a low level of digital literacy among health care providers and low level of motivation to make changes in organizational processes as a serious barrier to e-health promotion. Modern Russian research on this topic has identified significant gaps in basic digital skills among health professionals. At the same time, a low level of digital knowledge and patients’ trust create a low demand for e-health product development, and thus cannot act as an additional driver of IT developments. Health digitalization is an absolute trend in the current development of healthcare in our country, and in view of modern social and demographic trends, the need for medical services will only increase. Introduction of digital technologies into practice should contribute to better quality of and higher access to medical services, therefore health digitalization is a timely and logical stage of medicine development in Russia.