A Ambulatory EHR Market Assessment, By Type [Modular

Ambulatory EHR Market Assessment, By Type [Modular, All-in-one], By Deployment Mode [On-premises, Cloud-based], By Application [Population Health Management, Referral Management, Patient Management, Clinical Decision Support, Practice Management, Health Analytics, Decision Support, E-prescribing, Others], By Practice Size [Solo Practices, Small-to-medium-sized Practices, Large Practices], By End-user [Independent Ambulatory Centers, Hospital-owned Ambulatory Centers], By Region, Opportunities and Forecast, 2017-2031F

Global ambulatory EHR market is projected to witness a CAGR of 6.74% during the forecast period 2024-2031F, growing from USD 7.31 billion in 2023 to USD 12.32 billion in 2031F. The market expansion is supported by increasing investments in the healthcare sector, growing efforts towards improving patient care, the economic benefits offered by EHR, and rising efforts to data accessibility.

The global ambulatory EHR market size is expanding due to the increasing awareness about the various advantages associated with the system including improved quality of care, reduced medication errors, enhanced data accessibility, and increased patient engagement. These systems aid in preventing medication errors by enabling automatic medication prescribing and providing reminders and alerts to healthcare professionals. Medical errors cost roughly USD 20 billion to the medical industry each year. EHR systems can help reduce these costs by minimizing communication errors, one of the leading errors that cause medical inaccuracies. Meanwhile, the transparency created for patients by the EHR systems encourages them to regularly engage with their healthcare providers and take control of their health.

Increasing efforts by various companies to provide connected care to rural hospitals bolstered the market expansion. For instance, in 2023, OCHIN partnered with rural hospitals to support clinical care coordination and interdisciplinary care plans after analyzing the gaps in rural healthcare. The implementation of the new EHR system is expected to offer rural hospitals distinctive technologies and tools to increase the access of local communities to connected and high-quality care. The company also launched OCHIN Epic for acute to allow hospitals to recruit skilled workforce and offer ambulatory EHR.

Increasing Government Efforts Boost Market Demand

The increasing investments by different governments into various EHR systems to support decision-making for public health and improve clinical decision-making are providing lucrative growth opportunities to the market. For instance, India’s National Health Authority is providing incentives to promote the creation of digital health records. Such efforts are expected to encourage adopting EHR systems, allowing healthcare providers to offer patient-centric healthcare services.

In April 2023, the Welsh government launched an innovation fund to allow pharmacy system suppliers to develop their systems to electronically support the transfer of prescriptions. This initiative aims to ensure that the patients have access to different prescription services via the NHS Wales App in all GP surgeries in Wales in twenty-four months. For the rollout of electronic prescription services, approximately £12 million will be spent over the next two years, and it is expected to save about 40 million paper forms.

Strategic Collaborations Support Global Ambulatory EHR Market Growth

Increasing strategic collaborations and partnerships between various market players are expected to support market growth over the forecast period. Such collaborations are expected to foster innovations and the introduction of novel products. They are also expected to allow hospitals to focus on providing better patient care services. In 2023, Bergen New Bridge Medical Center and Altera Digital Health expanded their Paragon EHR partnership for five more years. The largest hospital and clinical affiliate of the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School has leveraged Paragon since 2017. By maintaining Paragon, the medical center expects to execute its short-term goals. They are also planning on deploying other Altera solutions, such as Paragon Clinician Mobile, allowing access to patient clinical data anywhere.

North America Accounts for Significant Market Share

The increasing emphasis on improving patient care, rising investments in the healthcare sector, and growing availability and adoption of advanced technological solutions support the expansion of the North American ambulatory EHR market. The rising awareness about EHR systems among patients and increasing investments towards incorporating IT-based solutions in the healthcare sector are other major factors supporting the market growth. The increase in product launches and rising adoption of ambulatory EHR systems by different healthcare providers including Texas Partners Center further provides lucrative growth opportunities to the market. In 2023, Texas Partners Center adopted the unified cloud-based solutions offered by eClinicalWorks for Ambulatory Surgery Centers (ASCs). This adoption is expected to enable the Texas Partners Center to enhance its ambulatory surgery center operations by allowing the automation of different key processes including clinical documentation, scheduling, and billing. This in turn is expected to aid the healthcare provider in streamlining their operations and improve patient care.

Cloud-based Expected to Account for Significant Global Ambulatory EHR Market Share

The segment growth can be attributed to the advantages of cloud-based ambulatory EHR systems including user-friendly software models and cost efficiency. The rising investments by various companies towards integrating new technologies with EHR systems to enhance their functions further support the segment's growth. For instance, in 2023, Oracle unveiled multiple enhancements to its Oracle Health EHR platform. These enhancements are expected to alleviate healthcare providers' workload and empower patients. The features include the provision of voice services via a secure patient portal and advanced document recognition among others. The goal behind introducing these enhancements is to eliminate redundant processes, reducing the wastage of time.

E-prescribing Segment is Expected to Witness Significant Growth

The expansion of the segment can be attributed to the growing awareness about the various advantages associated with e-prescribing including reduced medical errors, economic efficiency, and enhancement of patient care quality. The increasing adoption of e-prescribing systems by various government hospitals is expected to boost the global ambulatory EHR market growth. For instance, in 2023, the state health department of Kolkata decided to adopt e-prescriptions at medical colleges and government hospitals to maintain digital records of diseases and transparency. The system also allows for fewer callbacks from pharmacies to medical practitioners for clarification. Electronically receiving and sending prescriptions also aids in increasing compliance and patient satisfaction and streamlining the clinical practice workflow. These systems can either be used as standalone systems in ambulatory care settings or be incorporated into EHR systems.

Future Market Scenario (2024–2031F)

As per the global ambulatory EHR market analysis, the conduction of different studies for evaluating the effects of ambulatory EHR on various health conditions is expected to support the market expansion over the forecast period. For instance, Wake Forest University Health Sciences is conducting an interventional study to assess the implementation and effectiveness of cardiovascular health assessment tools that are EHR-based. The central hypothesis of the study is that EHR-based cardiovascular health assessment tools will increase health promotion activities, visits, and referrals to cardiology and primary care, and promote cardiovascular health discussions. The providers present at each intervention site will undergo training to ensure that the subjects are provided with high-quality care during routine follow-ups. The study is expected to conclude in July 2025.

Key Players Landscape and Outlook

Key participants are helping the market expand by supporting strategic collaborations and alliances, increasing emphasis on research and development activities, and raising investments toward enhancing patient care.

In 2023, Luma Health, one of the leading patient success platforms, and Nextgen Healthcare, a global provider of cloud-based healthcare solutions, announced their partnership to equip ambulatory organizations with artificial intelligence-enhanced solutions to enhance self-scheduling and patient communication. The seamless integration of these solutions with Nextgen Enterprise EHR will allow patients to interact with the staff, complete pre-visit formalities, and provide necessary documents from the comfort of their homes.