GE Healthcare invests $2 billion in IT

GE Healthcare today announced plans to invest $2 billion over the next five years to accelerate the development of innovative software for healthcare systems and applications.

In an announcement at UKRC in Liverpool, the company said the investment "is designed to advance current and future offerings in order to address new and pressing operational and productivity challenges faced by healthcare organisations around the world."

Key focus areas will include enabling clinicians to care for more patients through scheduling efficiencies, faster data entry, proactive asset management, clinical decision support, and financial gains that allow for expansion.

Other areas of interest will include reducing costs by optimising workflow in care delivery, minimising payment cycles, maximising reimbursement rates and eliminating unnecessary waste.

The company will also look to developments to help minimise re-work and redundancies by enhancing collaboration and making patient information universally accessible.

President and chief executive, John Dineen, said: "GE is investing in software and analytics to better help our customers manage the operational complexity of the healthcare system.

"These new software solutions will look to connect caregivers in a meaningful way to the systems upon which they rely, enabling them to make better informed diagnoses and improved care.

"Healthcare has always relied on ‘big data’ and the need to understand data is even greater now.

"What is important is how we use data, providing the right technology that allows physicians to pinpoint the right diagnosis; match it to the right treatment and make more informed decisions."