Trends in healthcare for 2019

We are in a rapidly changing and complex environment. Across every aspect of healthcare, the common theme that connects the ecosystem together is that the future of health is technology.

There is so much excitement around where technology is going and how the industry is transforming,  all with the patient at the centre. In addition to technology attributes such as deep insights, agility, innovation and collaboration are becoming key trends in the realisation of the future of healthcare.

To realise the future, we need to look more into four main areas; technology, data science, the new workforce, and digital disruption.

Technology

The future of technology includes virtual reality replacing pain relief, medical decision making via AI, precision medicine through pharmacy-genomics, augmented reality for impactful patient information, apps sending continuous messages and data. Using digital techniques to reach remote patients, improving compliance to medicine and help the patient directly are advancing and proving to be successful.

The expansion of wearable technologies in healthcare is creating both opportunities and challenges.

The opportunities in gaining insight from real time big data and remote monitoring offer proven value including improved patient quality of life, consistent connectivity with patient and caregivers, better symptom control, greater adherence to treatment, fewer hospital stays (planned and unplanned), fewer nursing home admissions in the elderly, insights into disease patterns for intervention and care management, and decreased overall costs to the health system. There are challenges though, with the rate of growth in this area HTA agencies and Payers are still looking into real world evidence guidelines and reimbursement structures for wearable technologies.

Cyber safety should be an investment not a cost and part of everyone’s business planning.

Technology and Cyber Security go hand in hand. Cyber resilience is a hot topic for 2019. Cybersecurity as health technology evolves, will become a top strategy priority in healthcare business plans. The growth and investment on digital and technology needs to match with the focus and investment to cyber security to ensure safety, growth and better outcomes.

Data Science

Innovation is happening daily but the infrastructure surrounding it isn’t necessarily keeping up. We are experiencing an influx of data from clinical trials, wearable technology, medical apps, and social media. The data is giving us a lot of valuable information but we are still in the process of figuring out how to interpret the information and what to do with it. With the spike in data there is a greater demand for data scientists, health informatics and mathematicians, to communicate the insights from the data.

We now need to work on turning the information we are gathering into valuable knowledge that we can use to improve patient outcomes.

We are not there yet but we are on the right path to bridging the gap between information and knowledge to encourage further innovation.

Producing the new workforce

Australia is recognised globally for our leading healthcare ecosystem, but we can do much more to promote healthcare as a career path and communicate more effectively with each other and the general public to raise more awareness.

Australia is recognised globally for our leading healthcare ecosystem.

The workforce is evolving just as much as technology is. Now, we have 4 generations within the workforce including baby boomers (1946-1964), gen X (1965-1976), gen Y/millennials (1977-1997), gen Z (1997- ). Now, more than ever, we have a blend of wisdom and digital innovation that is creating a strength in diversity of thinking, which in turn encourages collaboration, innovation and education.

With this diversity comes a need to lead, educate and encourage higher levels of emotional intelligence.

With the changing dynamic and skills set there is an increasing demand for flexible and remote working, to attract and retain the diverse generational workforce, requiring leaders and businesses to consider the way they collaborate and communicate with their workforce. The implementation of digital technology has improved the ability for workforces to work in different settings, but this has created a gap in personal engagement and human interaction.

As digital and technology expands so does the need for collaboration, communication, and engagement. Emotional intelligence will become a key driver in organisations from the selection of new employees, job interviews and induction to the ongoing performance engagement of employees.

Internal and external collaboration and advocacy are key. Communicating, sharing ideas, listening and solving problems together, all with the best interest of the patient. This reinforces that the future of health is technology and people working together, sharing information, expanding support networks, streamlining processes, tailoring and personalising health management plans, connecting care-givers, family and friends, the patient and the specialists.

2019 will re-calibrate the balance of digital and human in the workforce as much as with the customer and end user. 

With the new skills needed at a great rate and a skill shortage there is a dramatic increase in contracting, with a focus specifically on subject matter experts adding immediate, short term project-based expertise to companies. This is seen predominantly in IT and data science areas of organisations.

Long term strategies that are a focus more so than ever before are graduate programs. Businesses are working closely with universities to encourage new skills and mindsets to the business. Mathematicians, data scientists and digitally advanced graduates. Businesses are offering programs to attract and retain graduates with the offering to mentor and offer career opportunities.

Technology is advancing and evolving, digital strategies are becoming more courageous and challenging the status quo.

The digital world is being embraced and people are learning rapidly on how digital technology can change how we care and support in healthcare as well as aid a company to achieve their goals. Leaders are embracing it and employing a new generation of workforce to take our learnings to another level. To compliment the new era of workforce the need for mentorship, specifically in emotional intelligence, is at its height.

 We are in exciting times, leveraging wisdom and innovation and encouraging collaboration and education will take the Australian workforce to great success.

Digital Disruption

Digital disruption is a key driver for customer engagement encouraging real time and consistent connectivity. There is information at the touch of a button which is powerful and exciting creating more knowledge and consequently confidence, for the customer and end user.

The balance of digital and physical will be a continued topic in 2019. 

"Phygital" is a term gaining traction highlighting the need and significance of human interaction and digital interaction. The balance of digital and physical to engage and communicate to change behaviours, promote a product or service and raise awareness. In healthcare, face to face and over the phone engagement is still needed and encouraged through customer facing positions.

The magic mix of physical face to face contact and digital marketing giving the customers a seamless and integrated customer experience. Engagement will evolve to advocacy and data will be the driving force behind the conversations and interactions.

Digital disruption continues. We need to adapt to survive.

PX (patient experience) is becoming more and more about an integrated approach from all aspects of healthcare including the HCP, hospitals, general practice and healthcare companies working together for better outcomes. Simplifying the user experience to encourage consistent connectivity with care givers, medical specialists, the patient, the support network and family including remote monitoring and care.

Patients are more knowledgeable today than ever before.

With the patient being more empowered we have seen a greater use of social media channels to educate, collaborate and support other patients and carers. To speak with others to make sense of the information that is readily available to them. Our industry is needing to be more courageous, targeted, relevant and personalised and embrace social media for the patient experience. The empowered patient is the patient that bridges the gap of information to knowledge giving them confidence and security in a vulnerable time in their lives. There is consequently a need for more collaboration and education with internal and external stakeholders to then develop ideas and implement them to improve patient outcomes, in real time.

Summary

Our health system is an asset that we need to invest in. When we collaborate, we innovate. Diversity in thinking will encourage a new era of the workforce and enhance how we are already embracing technology.

We are already unlocking the potential of Australian Healthcare innovation. 

2019 is an exciting year for healthcare.