“The Impossible Trinity": APAC medtech adoption stifled by unrealistic expectations on trade offs

Healthcare will be revolutionised by innovative predictive personalised medical technology one day, just not today.

Faced with the thunder of demographic currents, health policymakers across Asia Pacific seem to be hunting for a “medtech unicorn” - in this context, not a disruptive high growth start-up, but the search for something that just doesn’t exist.

At the Accelerating Adoption of Health Technologies session convened by the Financial Times at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore explored the challenges of why isn’t medical technology embraced and embedded more into health systems. Afterall it’s the only option that can be rapidly scaled.

Leo Lewis, the Financial Times Tokyo Bureau Chief, explained “We see these issues coming over the horizon, yet the urgency to address them remains low. Why isn’t more being done now to prevent healthcare crises in the future? Prevention is being sacrificed at the expense of short-term needs.”

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As aging populations across Asia Pacific present extraordinary healthcare demands, policymakers in the region find themselves at a crossroads on a question that has been deferred many times before: should they prioritise preventive care for younger generations or focus resources on supporting a growing elderly population?

In either scenario a greater adoption plus the accompanying investment in medical technology will be required, yet for policymakers, now, never seems to be the right time.

?In many Asia Pacific nations, the population is transitioning to an “aged society” status faster than expected. This demographic shift, while long anticipated, has advanced at rates that challenge traditional healthcare models.

Countries like Japan, which was the first to face this issue, now has a population where nearly 30% are over the age of 70, with 40% of its voters aged 65 and above. In Southeast Asia, countries such as Thailand and Vietnam are approaching similar demographic shifts.

It took Japan 24 years to transition from an “aging” to an “aged” society, yet Vietnam is expected to complete this shift in just 17 years, while Thailand is on track to do so in 19.

“This is not an issue unique to Japan,” said Lewis “the demographic pressures we see here are a preview for the rest of Asia Pacific, which is ageing at an unprecedented pace. The question is, how can the region best adapt?”?

In this context, a shift towards preventive healthcare might seem like an obvious choice. Preventive measures targeting lifestyle-related conditions like obesity and mental health could significantly reduce future healthcare costs and improve quality of life across all age groups.

Implementing proactive strategies is a challenge in a region where many countries have historically leaned towards treatment rather than preventive care, especially with the day-to-day pressure to allocate limited resources to acute needs among elderly populations, leaving little left to deploy for longer term prophylactic measures.

The "Impossible Trinity"

Aniruddha Patil from the Asian Development Bank provided a candid assessment of the challenges policymakers face. “What we strive to do is we strive to accelerate progress towards universal health coverage in Asia and the Pacific,” Patil explained.

“We look at what policymakers want to do, and policymakers want to achieve three objectives. They want healthcare to be accessible, affordable, and high quality. I mean, that’s an impossible trinity. Even two of them are very difficult to get, and three are practically impossible.”

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This “impossible trinity” captures the utopian, risk free, hope of health systems in Asia Pacific, where the pursuit of universal health coverage often clashes with practical constraints for policymakers of tight budgets, diverse healthcare needs, and a growing elderly population.

?These expectations are, as many experts have pointed out, na?ve - no single solution can address all a country’s healthcare needs while being irresistibly inexpensive.

Policy proposals for expanded healthcare budgets may face political resistance due to fears of higher taxes, even in countries where the aging population’s healthcare needs are undeniable and with evidence suggesting health investment is popular with electorates.

Public-Private Partnerships: Bridging the Healthcare Gap

A promising way to address these healthcare challenges is through public-private partnerships. Governments across Asia Pacific are increasingly recognising the potential of private sector involvement to supplement and strengthen healthcare services, particularly in areas where government resources are stretched thin. Such partnerships can facilitate innovative funding models, which could help finance preventive health initiatives and alleviate the burden on state-run healthcare systems.

In countries where elderly care is a major concern, some governments have begun partnering with private organisations to ensure both preventive and curative services are delivered efficiently.

“We’re seeing a lot of capital waiting to come in from the private sector,” said Hong Huei Lee, a medical doctor and co-founder of Foundation Healthcare Holdings, during a panel discussion. “But for these partnerships to work effectively, we need clear regulatory support and collaborative frameworks. Private capital can contribute meaningfully without sacrificing quality or affordability, but it requires a coordinated approach.”

One notable example is Indonesia’s BPJS Health program, which now mandates that private hospitals treating patients covered under this programme submit patient data to streamline and improve healthcare services nationwide. This model could serve as a blueprint for other nations seeking to pool resources and align public and private healthcare efforts. The Philippines and Vietnam are also exploring similar frameworks, recognising that public-private partnerships are essential in managing healthcare costs while maintaining a focus on both preventive and elderly care.?

Vietnam and Thailand, both ageing societies with diverse economic challenges, provide case studies in the consequences of deprioritising prevention. As these countries near “super-aged” status, they face mounting healthcare costs and pressure to cater to an older population. Unlike Japan, which has had decades to prepare, these countries have a fraction of the time, putting an extraordinary burden on their healthcare infrastructure. Without preventive care initiatives, these nations risk an overburdened system, exacerbated by the very health issues that could have been mitigated through early intervention.

In Singapore, health technology solutions are increasingly seen as viable options for improving preventive care. However, across much of Asia Pacific, technology adoption is hindered by data fragmentation, limited interoperability between public and private systems, and regulatory barriers.

Lee Hong Huei pointed out that data sharing remains a particularly thorny issue. “Healthcare data is often siloed,” he said. “We need better collaboration and trust to facilitate data sharing while safeguarding privacy. Without a robust data-sharing framework, technology cannot reach its full potential in healthcare.”?

While each country in Asia Pacific faces its unique healthcare challenges, a regional approach to health technology adoption could accelerate solutions. Experts argue that harmonising regulations and establishing collaborative networks across borders would allow the region to benefit from shared innovations, especially in preventive care. This type of collaboration would enable countries to tackle common healthcare issues, reduce duplicative efforts, and pool resources for initiatives that benefit the entire region.

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