Hybrid care implementation: from strategy to success
In the first part of this blog series, we explained what hybrid care is and how it works in practice. But there’s still a big gap between inspiring examples and real, structural change. How do you ensure hybrid care doesn’t remain a series of isolated initiatives, but becomes an integral part of your organization?
In this second part, we dig deeper into implementation, prerequisites, and the most common challenges.
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How to implement hybrid care
The key point is that hybrid care doesn’t start with technology. Designing the patient journey should be the first step. For each stage, ask yourself: what does the patient really need here, and how can we meet that need without introducing point solutions everywhere?
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Phase 1: Before the appointment
Does the patient actually need to come on-site, or can an intake and information provision be held digitally? What preparation do patients need, and how can we reach them most effectively?
Phase 2: During treatment
Which touchpoints require physical interaction? For instance, delivering a diagnosis often benefits from face-to-face empathy. But administrative tasks or other interactions could be handled digitally, following the principle many hospitals now use: “digital, self-directed, and at home.”
Phase 3: After treatment
Can follow-up care, monitoring, or guidance carry on remotely? How do we maintain contact without unnecessary hospital visits?
Above all, the focus should be on the interaction between healthcare professionals and patients. Anyone designing the patient journey must recognize that patients experience an emotional journey, not traditional care trajectories — one filled with anxiety, hope, and uncertainty. Hybrid care, and the communication around it, must align seamlessly with that patient experience.
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What do you need to organize hybrid care succesfully?
Successful hybrid care relies on alignment across four building blocks:
Processes
Hybrid care trajectories with clear rules: digital unless / physical unless
Embedded in regular planning and schedules
Clear escalation procedures
People
Healthcare professionals with digital skills
Acceptance of and trust in hybrid care models
Clarity on roles and responsibilities
Information
Clear patient communication via preferred channels
Consistent content across multiple touchpoints
Insight from data and feedback for continuous improvement
Technology
Reliable digital channels
Integration with existing electronic health records (EHRs) and systems
User-friendly for both patients and professionals
This reflects how we at iO guide healthcare organizations: connecting people, process, information, and technology, with the patient journey as the starting point.
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In an ideal world, healthcare organizations leverage technology to better reach patients and make the work of care providers easier. Digital tools and seamless data integration shorten waiting times, give patients more control over their care journey, and free healthcare professionals to focus on what truly matters: delivering care.
To understand where your organization stands, it’s wise to start with a maturity scan. This helps you identify the most critical gaps and map out a clear path to close them. From there, you can move into capability building.
How to get started with hybrid care
Start not with technology, but by zooming out to understand where your organization stands. Ask yourself these three key questions:
How mature are we?
Conduct a maturity scan across People, Process, Information, and Technology (PPIT). Read more about this here.Where are our biggest quick wins?
Analyze your current patient journeys thoroughly.Which capabilities are missing?
Perform a gap analysis and prioritize action points.
Next, use these principles to get started:
Start small: pilot a single department or care pathway
Engage all stakeholders: healthcare professionals, IT, patient representatives
Focus on quick wins: choose initiatives with immediate impact
Evaluate systematically: learn from each step and adjust along the way
What’s holding hybrid care back in practice?
Many healthcare organizations know they need hybrid care. But all too often, they hit roadblocks. The most common pitfalls are:
1. Fragmentation
Departments launch their own digital initiatives with little cohesion
Multiple tools are in use (video calls, portals, apps) but don’t communicate with each other
No clear end-to-end patient journey, only fragmented experiences
2. Insufficient organizational setup
IT is often tasked with hybrid care implementation, as if it were purely a technical project
Healthcare professionals are insufficiently involved, leading to low ownership
No overarching vision: when is care digital, when is it in-person?
Roles and responsibilities aren’t clearly defined
3. Limited insight into organizational maturity
Organizations often lack visibility on:
How mature they are in hybrid care
Where quick wins exist
Which capabilities are missing
As a result, pilot projects remain pilots, scaling fails, and healthcare professionals get frustrated when systems meant to simplify their work do the opposite.
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Key considerations when organizing hybrid care
Hybrid care needs more than innovation. It requires a culture shift. Key points include:
Not every patient is capable or willing to get digital care
In the Netherlands, 2.5 million adults struggle with illiteracy, and 34% of those over 75 are not digitally proficient. Hybrid care should not widen existing health inequalities, so inclusive digital care is essential.
Privacy and data protection
Digital tools rely on data, but strict regulations apply. Organizations must comply with GDPR and communicate with patients transparently.
Adoption by healthcare professionals
Staff should both want and be able to use new tools. Without buy-in and proper training, implementation is likely to fail.
Conclusion
Hybrid care is not a digital fix for capacity problems. It’s an organizational transformation. It requires redesigning care models and processes to enable better collaboration, higher-quality care, and care closer to home. It demands conscious decisions: when does digital interaction add value, and when is physical contact essential?
Success depends not on the best technology, but on the ability to align people, processes, information, and technology. Put the patient journey at the center of everything you do, then apply digital tools where they make a real difference.
True transformation requires all disciplines at the table: IT, care professionals, communication, change management, and data analysis.
Ready for real hybrid care?
Want to know where your organization stands and the best next steps? A maturity scan shows your current capabilities and helps set priorities. At iO, we combine healthcare expertise with digital transformation know-how. We don’t just sell tools, we actually partner with you to implement hybrid care, from strategy to execution.
Let’s explore how hybrid care can be sustainably integrated into your organization.
About iO
iO helps organizations with digital transformation by connecting people, processes, content, and technology. In healthcare, we guide organizations from strategy to implementation of hybrid care delivery.
Check out our previous blog about Hybrid care.