REDWOOD CITY, Calif., August 1,2024– Healthcare organizations navigating the delicate balance between construction and technology initiatives must foster partnerships in order to effectively integrate technology into capital project planning according to the latest in DPR Construction’s Healthcare Insights series.

“Today’s patients expect more than clinical expertise,” said Carl Fleming, a DPR healthcare strategist. “They’re seeking a ‘phygital’ experience: seamless interactions that span both the physical environment of traditional healthcare facilities and the digital environment of virtual care. This has significant ramifications for construction project planning.”

As a result, strategic capital allocation is a critical lever for organizations aiming to meet growth needs, enhance patient care, and drive innovation within and beyond the walls of their health systems. Two areas are in focus:

• Investments in physical care spaces – ranging from hospitals and medical office buildings to urgent care centers and more – which are essential for expanding capacity, improving patient access, and enhancing care delivery.

• The digital care environment, which is experiencing accelerated transformation driven by the same expectations of clinical care providers and the patient-consumer. Capital allocations in the digital care now must encompass solutions that enable frictionless, personalized care experiences no matter where the clinical care encounter takes place. This is beginning to include innovations in artificial intelligence, machine learning, remote patient monitoring and more.

“Technology continues to reshape healthcare, emphasizing the need for robust investments to satisfy the new patient-consumer mindset while staying true to the culture of the organization,” Fleming said. “Transforming the built and digital care environments to function in concert with one another is extremely complicated and costly. However, by aligning with expertise and resources from technology, digital, innovation and human experience initiatives, we can create a confluence of construction, technology and aligned investment that delivers value and increases human connection.”

DPR’s Healthcare Insights series examines the critical issues facing healthcare providers at the intersection of care and construction. Additionally, DPR’s Constructing With Care podcast takes a deeper dive into these topics along with views from other industry leaders.

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