The value of precision in healthcare
Precision medicine might be one of the most promising advances in the medical arena today. The hope is that by taking patients’ genetic makeup, environment, and lifestyle into account, their doctors can tailor highly precise, effective treatments. Unfortunately, these promises also cost a lot.
Precision medicine is still experimental, so it needs to prove its effectiveness consistently before payers agree to cover it. Providers might also hesitate until they know for certain that precision medicine will boost patient outcomes, lower healthcare costs, and provide returns on substantial investments.
The hesitation isn’t entirely about the costs of pursuing precision medicine. It’s also about demonstrating its value to patient outcomes compared to conventional treatments. To do that, information technology leaders in healthcare will need to introduce effective ways to gather, analyze, and organize data surrounding the results of precision medicine.
Read the full article by Marc Helberg in Health IT Outcomes.
