Mumbai: Indian hospitals are projected to increase their IT innovation budgets by 20–25% in the next two to three years, according to the CII EY HealthTech Survey 2025.
The study highlights that nearly half of healthcare providers are already allocating between 20–50% of their IT spending toward digital innovation, signaling a strong shift toward technology-driven healthcare.
Digital Priorities in Healthcare: Insights from CII EY HealthTech Survey 2025
The survey, launched at the CII Hospital Tech 2025 Summit, identifies improving patient experience, enhancing clinical outcomes, and enabling data-driven decision-making as the top three investment areas.
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Automation and artificial intelligence are emerging as central enablers, with healthcare providers exploring advanced use cases such as clinical documentation, decision support systems, and imaging.
Key Findings of the CII EY HealthTech Survey 2025
- Almost 50% of healthcare providers allocate 20–50% of IT budgets to digital innovation.
- Six in ten hospitals plan to invest in IT capability building, followed by BI tools and data lakes (50%).
- Hardware upgrades and application enhancements remain lower priorities (10%).
- 60% of providers cite IT workforce upskilling as their biggest digital challenge.
- Nearly 60% of respondents face hurdles in data management and BI tool adoption.
- More than half of providers have partially adopted the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), while 40% plan to adopt it soon.
Evolving AI Use Cases in Healthcare
According to the CII EY HealthTech Survey 2025, AI adoption is gaining traction in clinical areas. Around 72% of providers prioritize AI for clinical documentation and data analysis, 64% for decision support systems, and 60% for imaging solutions. These applications are helping improve data visibility, clinical decision-making, and patient outcomes.
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Barriers to Digital Transformation
Despite the momentum, healthcare providers face multiple barriers. Workforce capability building and IT team upskilling are cited by 60% of respondents as their biggest challenges. Additionally, resistance to change among stakeholders, integration issues with legacy systems, and cybersecurity concerns continue to hinder progress.
Data Privacy and Trust Remain Crucial
The survey highlights that all leading providers have implemented strong data privacy and compliance measures, including third-party audits and ISO/HIPAA certifications. Trust, security, and compliance are being recognized as strategic enablers rather than just regulatory requirements.
Strategic Roadmap: EY’s 5S Framework
To accelerate digital transformation, EY recommends a 5S framework for healthcare providers:
- Scalable Infrastructure – Flexible IT systems to support digital expansion.
- Seamless Patient Engagement – Leveraging telemedicine, wearables, and agentic AI.
- Strategic Data Usage – Unified data systems for real-time insights and predictive analytics.
- Strengthen Sustainability & Compliance – Integrating privacy, cybersecurity, and eco-friendly practices.
- Smart AI & Automation – Enhancing diagnostics, clinical decision-making, and administrative efficiency.
Joy Chakraborthy, Chairman, CII HospiTech 2025, emphasized, “Collaboration across government, industry, and providers is critical to unlocking India’s full HealthTech potential. The survey provides a roadmap for scaling innovation without compromising patient trust.”
Ankur Dhandharia, Partner – Healthcare, EY Parthenon India, added, “Healthcare leaders are moving from pilots to scalable use cases in AI and analytics. With initiatives like ABDM and DPDPA, India’s digital healthcare is set to become more patient-centric, efficient, and future-ready.”
