Digital transformation or change fatigue? Navigating tech in health and care
November 24th 2025
Digital transformation has moved from aspiration to necessity but in health and social care, it’s arriving fast and often without a clear plan.
At a recent Compass Carter Osborne round table, HR leaders described a sector still catching up with the digital basics, while frontline teams face mounting fatigue from constant change.
“We were driven to start digital transformation because our systems were end of life, but we’re still not looking at it strategically, it’s out of necessity.”
This urgency has sparked ambitious overhauls but without enough time, resources or digital fluency to implement them smoothly.
Stretched systems, shifting pressures
Outdated IT, paper-based processes, and fragmented systems are still common across the sector. For many organisations, COVID-19 exposed the scale of the problem. Now, post-pandemic, the pace of technological change is accelerating, often faster than leadership teams can process, and certainly faster than frontline teams can absorb.
“Our operational colleagues are delivering business as usual and managing the changes taking place at the top. That’s a huge ask.”
In social care especially, digital adoption is patchy. Many staff work long shifts without access to a mobile phone, let alone digital workflows and safeguarding, privacy, and funding barriers slow implementation further.
Beyond tools: Building digital maturity
Adopting new platforms isn’t enough. Several panellists pointed out that digital transformation isn’t just a tech project, it’s a mindset shift. Real progress depends on cultural buy-in, skills development, and leadership that understands what tech can (and can’t) do.
“Becoming a digital organisation is about how people think, not just what they use. A short course in AI won’t get you there.”
And while some leaders spoke about the potential of AI and automation, many warned against treating digital innovation as a quick fix. Without alignment, digital tools risk becoming distractions or worse, undermining the human element central to care.
Leading through the fatigue
Change fatigue is real. And in a workforce already stretched, poorly managed digital rollouts can deepen disengagement. HR leaders must help pace change appropriately, translate tech goals into real-world benefits, and support teams through the disruption.
“Technology alone doesn’t solve anything. “It’s people who make it work or not.”
In brief:
Digital transformation in care is urgent but uneven, often driven by necessity rather than strategy.
Success depends not just on tools, but on leadership, mindset and culture.
HR has a central role in managing change fatigue, building digital maturity, and keeping people at the heart of transformation.
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