The European Health Care system is struggling with an aging population, increasing pressure on public health budgets and rising costs, as well as an acute lack of healthcare workers after KOVICE-19. As in many other sectors, the pandemic was a catalyst for the digital transformation of health care and quickly accelerated the acceptance of the Telehealth and the solution of remote care throughout Europe. For example, in Ireland, the use of telemedicine has been multiplied five since March 2020, with 20% of the population now interacting with healthcare providers through Telehealth tools.
Although digitization increases operational efficiency in hospitals and helps to provide better patient care, for example through fast or more accurate diagnoses, it also comes with risks. In recent years, we have seen steep infrees in cyber attacks on European hospitals. In response to these repeated attacks across the EU and the European Commission recently issued an action plan for cyber security of hospitals and healthcare providers to offer national and European solutions to this call.
How can we ensure that digitization brings maximum benefits to patients and the fortification of the safety and resistance of the European health care system?
In the political recommendations of Cisco for attached health care in Europe, we focus on seven of what is decisive for the digital transformation of health care. In this blog I would like to bring three central of the more interconnected and resistant health care system in Europe: cyber security, digital skills and connection.
Solving a challenge for cyber safety
The increase in cyber attacks on hospitals was powered by ransomware. These attacks may have an impact of life -threatening. In June last year, an impact on the attack of Ransomware NHS England meant that hospitals were no longer able to quickly connect patients with their right blood type, forcing the NHS to urge people with universal blood types to donate their blood.
Cyber security is a multilateral challenge in the health sector that requires a holistic reaction that includes financing, skills and technology.
Repair and replacement of older technology, equipment and software is inhibited in acute care. Since system downtime may be disastrous and specialized older applications may not work on newer operating systems, too many hospitals decide to continue using digital devices running on obsolete software. A short -term choice that represents a huge source of vulnerability and open doors for dangerous actors.
To solve this problem, hospitals and healthcare providers should be motivated to identify, relieve risk and eventually replace connected devices in their networks when they reach an end of life and are not long covered with software updates. The evaluation of maturity to identify action knowledge of vulnerability is a useful first step as stated in the Action Plan.
In addition, European governments should introduce specialized financial programs for the hospital’s cyber security. The French Care Plan, which was launched in December 2023 with a budget of EUR 250 million by 2025, has already proven its necessary. In his first call in May 2024 he received 1200 financing applications and only 730 of them could be a grant.
Equipment of healthcare workers with digital skills
Cyber hygiene has low health care due to lack of digital and cyber skills between medical staff. As Enisa shows, 40% of Garden health organizations have security awareness programs for non -state employees.
We call on Member States to determine the clear standard of digital training adapted to each hospital on the basis of specific skills. All health care employees should undergo standard cyber resistance training, while the head of the department should complete more advanced training. It is essential to assign a reserved time for compulsory training to ensure that they are not displaced.
The Action Plan of the European Commission deals with this gap in skills and has the task of ENISA to create educational modules for healthcare professionals. This is a welcome step and Cisco will support the initiatives of national and European skills for the health sector. In the last three years alone, Cisco network academy has trained over 250,000 European cyber security through free races.
Connectivity: the basis of digital health care
Since the European Commission is considering the future digital network law, our document also emphasizes importance Advanced connection For digital health care.
With the increase in digital imaging, TeleHealth and growing IoT deployment, hospitals need more and more reliable, high -speed and high -capacity network connections.
In the future, progress of IoT, the rise of widespread and virtual reality and accepting the theses across European health care-thinking about the visualization of virtual anatomy for doctors and medical students require high-quality wireless connection. Another spectrum is necessary to meet these requirements: allocating the upper part of the 6GHz band for the indoor Wi-Fi indoor and opening 3.4-3.8 and 3.8-4.2 GHz belts for 5G private networks will be Bey.
Digital solutions have a very deep transformation of European health care for the better. As our report emphasizes, these solutions can even be described as a “fourth tool” – along with water, gas and electricity – revolutionary patient care and strengthening the effective and sustainability of the hospital.
For advanced secure digital tools, health care providers can provide faster diagnoses, personalized treatment and improved access to care, leading to healthier results for all citizens. If you want to make the most of this potential across the board, it is essential to set the right police.
Dive into our police recommendations to use the full strength of the Revolution of Digital Health.
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