Innovation without infrastructure? The hidden risk in Canada's AI-powered care

Canada's healthcare system is moving toward a more digital future, propelled by the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI). From real-time diagnostics to automating routine tasks, AI is offering a glimpse of smarter, more responsive care. But while the front end of healthcare is evolving quickly, the back end remains stuck in the past.

According to SOTI's latest global healthcare report, Healthcare's Digital Dilemma: Calculated Risks and Hidden Challenges Exposed, 87% of Canadian healthcare IT leaders are now using AI to support patient care, a significant leap from 72% in 2024. Yet 99% of these same organizations still rely on outdated legacy systems that are making it harder to integrate innovations and keep patient data secure.

AI Adoption is Soaring - But Cracks Are Showing

AI is no longer a future aspiration in Canadian healthcare; it's a current reality. Healthcare providers across the country leverage AI for everything from updating patient records (68%) to analyzing medical data (60%), personalizing treatments (47%), and even diagnosing conditions (41%).

This surge in AI usage is particularly prominent in Canada, where leveraging AI for administrative tasks has jumped nearly fivefold in just one year, from 11% in 2024 to 52% in 2025. That's the highest increase among the countries surveyed, suggesting that Canadian healthcare is more than ready to embrace automation in day-to-day operations. However, real transformation demands more than tools. It requires a digital infrastructure that can support them. And that's where the challenge lies.

The Cost of Hanging onto Legacy Systems

While AI use surges, many healthcare organizations are still operating on old foundations. These outdated systems are not only slow and siloed but increasingly dangerous. The report found that 51% of Canadian IT leaders believe their legacy infrastructure is putting their networks at risk of cyberattacks, and with good reason. An overwhelming 88% of Canadian healthcare organizations reported a data breach or security incident in the past year, the highest rate globally.

These outdated systems also limit the effective management of new technology. Nearly half (46%) of Canadian IT teams are unable to deploy or maintain new medical devices due to infrastructure limitations. This lack of agility means that even the most advanced tools are often underutilized, and IT teams spend more time troubleshooting than improving patient care.

The consequences of relying on outdated infrastructure go beyond inefficiency. They impact patient safety and organizational resilience. In today's healthcare environment, every second counts. A system crash or device failure isn't just an IT problem; it can delay diagnoses, interrupt care, and increase the risk of medical errors.

SOTI's research shows that 73% of Canadian healthcare organizations regularly experience tech issues and downtime. Multiply that across a hospital or health system, and the cost becomes staggering, both in dollars and in compromised care.

Healthcare has become a prime target for cybercriminals. As more devices and applications are connected across networks, the attack surface widens. Especially when legacy systems lack the basic ability to detect or block suspicious access.

In 2025, 53% of Canadian healthcare IT leaders identified data security as their top concern, up from 39% the previous year. The results show that even as AI adoption accelerates, the foundational digital ecosystem is not only fragmented but vulnerable.

Managing security becomes even more complex with the use of shared mobile devices, which are common in healthcare settings where nurses, doctors, and administrative staff rely on the same pool of technology. Without proper oversight, these devices can quickly become weak points in the network, leading to data breaches, compliance violations, or worse.

Addressing these vulnerabilities demands more than a patchwork approach. It calls for a cohesive digital strategy that prioritizes real-time visibility, lifecycle management, and proactive security - all while minimizing the burden on overstretched IT teams.

Why Enterprise Mobility Management Is the Missing Link

Organisations are scaling innovation on top of broken systems. To make it work, they need tools that offer real-time visibility, proactive control, and robust security.

With connected medical devices, from tablets to telehealth systems, now essential to modern healthcare, simple Mobile Device Management (MDM) tools are no longer enough. The complexity of today's tech environment demands a modern Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) solution: a more advanced, centralized approach that enables IT teams to secure, monitor, and troubleshoot devices at scale.

Another critical piece of the infrastructure puzzle is how fast and effectively healthcare organizations can build and deploy custom mobile apps by just describing the app they would like to build in a simple natural language. No-code solutions that have incorporated AI allow staff to create secure, purpose-built apps without needing a team of developers - are becoming essential for streamlining everything from patient intake to incident reporting. These tools empower frontline workers to adapt quickly, improving workflows without adding IT overhead.

In the absence of modern infrastructure and effective device management, even the most advanced AI applications can fall short of their full potential.

What Comes Next: Bridging the Infrastructure Gap

If healthcare leaders want to embrace the benefits of AI and digital care, investment in foundational infrastructure is urgent. This means not only replacing legacy systems but rethinking how IT is managed across the entire enterprise. From training frontline staff to embedding cybersecurity best practices and implementing advanced analytics tools, modernization must be comprehensive.

The path forward also requires collaboration. Government funding and national standards for interoperability and cybersecurity will be key, but so will partnerships between healthcare providers, technology vendors, and academic institutions.

AI Can't Do It Alone

Healthcare in Canada is moving towards a vision of more accessible, personalized, and efficient care that is within reach, but only if the systems underneath are strong enough to support it.

AI may be transforming patient services, but without modern infrastructure, its impact will remain limited. The future of healthcare depends not just on the tools we use, but on how well we prepare the ground beneath them.