Implementing new technology in healthcare is crucial for streamlining workflows, scaling operations, and improving participant outcomes.
For new clinics looking to implement new technology, resistance to change is often a common challenge. Sometimes what might seem like small obstacles can grow into larger barriers, making the process feel overwhelming.
Once the barriers to change are identified and understood, clinics can adjust their strategies to successfully integrate new tools and support their happy teams throughout the process.
Here we outline five ways to overcome barriers to new technology adoption within clinics:
Focus on the outcome and highlight challenges
Optimise workflows and integrate with existing platforms
Overcome stakeholder perception challenges
Engage, train and empower your team
Address internal organisational and economic barriers
1. Focus on the outcome and highlight challenges
No one wants to be left behind at work, but it’s easy to stick with current comfortable workflows and resist new updates.
Learning something new takes time and effort, so it’s important to answer the fundamental question: what’s in it for them?
The rapid pace of technological advancements can be overwhelming for many in allied health, especially when it’s unclear whether new tools provide tangible value. To ensure new technology is worth the investment, clinics should regularly evaluate the return on investment (ROI) by measuring reductions in administrative burdens and improvements in participant outcomes.
Then effective communication about the benefits of adopting the new change is essential - such as improving efficiency and enhancing participant care. It’s helpful to outline what might be challenging, where effort is required, and the benefit of said effort to bring team members along the journey of change in the workplace.
Offering comprehensive training and ongoing support further eases the transition, helping staff build the knowledge and confidence they need to effectively use the new system.
Theratrak aims to help eliminate resistance to change by simplifying home therapy program management, providing tailored training, and offering continuous support to ensure a smooth transition for clinics and easy adoption for clinicians.
2. Optimise workflows and integrate with existing platforms
Using multiple digital tools in healthcare can quickly lead to frustration, especially when clinicians need to manage different logins and manually transfer data between platforms. The solution to this challenge lies in updating systems or tools that can integrate seamlessly with existing workflows.
Simplified access through simple sign-in, pre-loaded resources, and automated data transfers reduces manual work and errors, allowing clinicians to focus more on participant care rather than administrative tasks.
Theratrak addresses these issues by offering seamless integration and automated data transfer, ensuring a smoother, more efficient experience for clinicians. Learn more about our integrations with case management systems like Coreplus and Cliniko to further optimise workflows and track therapy programs.
3. Overcome stakeholder perception challenges
Both clinicians and participants may hesitate to adopt new digital tools with concern that the new tech is unfamiliar and complex. When asking allied health professionals to adopt new technology, providing resources that address their concerns or answer common questions is helpful. Offering regular check-in or engagement communication touchpoints throughout the process can be useful to ensure challenges are addressed and overcome.
Comprehensive training is essential to help clinicians fully understand and utilise the technology, ensuring they feel confident when using the new technology. Just like in therapy, it can seem difficult to try something new for the first time.
With all technology, it’s important for users to have a friendly interface, engaging features and clear benefits from use. If something seems to be extra difficult for a clinical team to adopt, consider contacting the software or tool company for further advice or training.
Theratrak is always evolving our thorough, easy-to-follow training for clinicians and a participant-friendly app that incorporates progress tracking and gamification features - aiming to make the adoption process simple and engaging for all users.
4. Engage, train and empower your team
Engaging the entire team during the transition process is also key. Involving therapists and staff in the selection and implementation of new tools ensures they feel invested and confident in the changes. Often, team members can provide valuable insights based on their first-hand experiences and may even become internal advocates for the new system when they’ve been involved from the start.
Adopting user-friendly systems is also crucial to ensure that both clinicians and participants can easily navigate the platform, minimising frustration and maximising adoption. Clear, accessible support resources are essential to smoothing the learning curve and empowering teams to use the technology effectively.
The Theratrak team aims to provide an intuitive, user-friendly interface, simple TheratrakU training and easy-to-follow help documentation. Clinics can take the Theratrak Quiz to discover how much time their team could save each week.
5. Address internal organisational and economic barriers
Adopting new technology in allied health clinics can seem costly and disruptive to existing workflows, but strategic planning can address these concerns. Developing a clear implementation plan with defined timelines, measurable goals, and proper training resources ensures a smooth rollout.
While new technology initiatives may take longer than expected, having a plan in place helps prevent unnecessary delays and as with home therapy programs - plans help keep us on track! The more prepared a team is to adopt new technology, the more beneficial the adoption should be.
Flexible pricing models and scalable solutions allow clinics of all sizes to adopt new tools without incurring excessive costs. Clinics should monitor and analyse their use of tools and subscriptions then make necessary adjustments, ensuring the technology remains a good fit as needs change.
Theratrak aims to support clinics and their teams by offering easy-to-access training resources, flexible pricing options that scale with the clinic’s growth, and continuous monitoring tools to make adoption both cost-effective and efficient. Theratrak supports clinics through the adoption process by demonstrating clear ROI through administrative time saved as well as better therapy tracking capabilities.
Create Documentation, Provide Support & Overcome Barriers to New Tech Adoption in Clinics
Overcoming barriers to technology adoption in healthcare requires more than just introducing new systems - it demands a comprehensive, user-centred approach.
With proper planning and support, the benefits to adopting technology within clinics are well worth the effort.
By addressing resistance, simplifying integration, engaging teams, and offering continuous support, clinics can successfully transition to digital healthcare solutions.
Five ways to overcome barriers to new technology adoption within clinics:
Focus on the outcome and highlight challenges
Optimise workflows and integrate with existing platforms
Overcome stakeholder perception challenges
Engage, train and empower your team
Address internal organisational and economic barriers
With platforms like Theratrak, clinics can improve both participant outcomes and operational efficiency, ensuring that the full benefits of new technology are realised.
Book a training session to learn more about how Theratrak makes it easy to track and monitor home therapy programs for allied health clinics.
