Analysis of Disruptive Innovations in Healthcare: A Report

This report analyzes disruptive innovations in healthcare, focusing on the impact of new technologies and management strategies. It explores ThedaCare's implementation of lean healthcare management, highlighting its success in improving patient outcomes through efficient processes, such as providing lab results within 15 minutes. The report also discusses the challenges and benefits of disruptive innovations like Electronic Health Records (EHRs) and health informatics, acknowledging potential inefficiencies while emphasizing their long-term contributions to holistic patient care. The analysis references key sources to support its findings, providing a comprehensive overview of how these innovations are reshaping the healthcare landscape.

Running head: INNOVATIONS IN HEALTHCARE
INNOVATIONS IN HEALTHCARE
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1INNOVATIONS IN HEALTHCARE
Question 1
The concept of ‘disruptive innovation in healthcare’, imply the production of new
technologies, products, models of healthcare business or healthcare services which are efficient,
cost effective and user friendly, and are, ‘disruptive’ in the marketplace – meaning that the
release of such healthcare technologies, result in the breakdown and dramatic of existing markets
and pave the way for the production of future innovations (Christensen, Waldeck & Fogg, 2019).
Out of the many examples, a major highlight of disruptive innovations in healthcare can
be attributed to ‘ThedaCare’ – one of the first healthcare organizations who disrupted the age
old concepts of process analysis and management via the introduction of ‘lean healthcare
management’ processes. Lean healthcare process management implies the deliverance of
healthcare by eradication of non-value or non-critical steps and targeting directly and primarily,
the critical and high value processes of healthcare. A key example of ThedaCare achieving the
same, is during 2007 when the organization administered a breakthrough process of providing
patients lab results within 15 minutes of admission. This was a disruptive innovation since it
altered the idea that comprehensive patient communication processes were required, where
instead of the same, direct, simplified emphasis on value process and elimination of non-value
healthcare services yielded greater patient reach which was both time-saving and financially
feasible (Jiet, 2015).
Question 2
Disruptive or breakthrough innovations may not always yield successful results and
rather, may result in increased inefficiencies in terms of healthcare quality. A key example of

2INNOVATIONS IN HEALTHCARE
this included Electronic Health Records and Health Informatics which, even though were
efficient and time-saving in comparison to age-old pen and paper processes, often resulted in
health professionals conducting errors due to the time taken for mastering the technology.
However, despite the short term implications disruptive innovations have continued to provide
new innovations and insights to deliverance of holistic patient care (Magnuson & O’Carroll,
2014).

3INNOVATIONS IN HEALTHCARE
References
Christensen, C., Waldeck, A., & Fogg, R. (2019). How disruptive innovation can finally
revolutionize healthcare. Innosight executive briefing, retrieved on, 8.
Jie, D. E. N. G. (2015). Lean Healthcare Treatment: Lean Revolution in Thedacare Medical
Group of the United States. Modern Hospital Management, (2), 21.
Magnuson, J. A., & O’Carroll, P. W. (2014). Introduction to public health informatics. In Public
health informatics and information systems (pp. 3-18). Springer, London.