The pandemic has demonstrated that health care organizations can become more resilient, agile and innovative if they shift to digitally enabled business models with data at the core, according to an EY report, “Getting future ready”, released at BioAsia 2022 – Asia’s largest Life-sciences and Health-Tech convention. The report highlights how healthcare organizations need to create the right data environment to support a more human-centered approach.
Hitesh Sharma, National Tax Leader -Life Sciences, EY India said, “Healthcare delivery is moving outside the four walls of the traditional health system. Health care providers who take the lead in engaging with users across the health care value chain will be best placed to integrate the physical and the virtual world. Healthcare delivery in India, predominantly recognised for sick care delivery, will have to innovate in the coming decade to build next-gen capabilities, and unlock the power of data to enhance the overall healthcare experience.”
The paradigm of healthcare delivery is changing and is poised for a big leap forward, more so after the COVID-19 pandemic. A shift towards patient centricity, prevention, wellness, and anywhere and anytime healthcare delivery has created new opportunities to reimagine the entire patient journey. Data analytics and new technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, sensor, etc. are reshaping the entire product value chain. Many pharmaceutical and technology companies globally are coming up with new solutions.
The EY report states that the road to leveraging artificial intelligence is built from good data. Healthcare organizations need to consider creating the right data environment to support a more human-centered approach. The report further delves into the five key trends in data that will enable this transformation.
A new ecosystem built around the needs of the individual
The explosion of health care data requires a new ecosystem built around the needs of the individual enabled by technical standards, open data models and empowered by governance systems that deliver trust. The goal would be to have longitudinal health records from birth that records care received and other relevant data. The optimal architecture would unify disparate information from multiple sources to create a health information architecture that can connect and share data, at scale, within and among enterprises and systems.
The rise of digital remote care supported by data liquidity
Anywhere, anytime care is built upon consumer-oriented virtual health technologies and care models. Apps, wearables and environmental sensors capture and share permissioned information across the care spectrum. As 5G networks further penetrate, they will make the capture of real-time data much faster and more robust. For consumers, this data-driven connected health environment will anticipate their needs, passively monitor their health, and improve the quality and timeliness of their care. For healthcare organizations, AI analytics help address operational challenges, such as waste across workflows, supply chains and duplicative procedures, as well as help to anticipate clinical risks.
Interconnecting broad-based data for highly personalized care
To keep pace with the velocity and variety of health data generated, the health information infrastructure must enable providers to connect, combine, analyze and share health and social data. Data regarding a unique individual’s habits, social determinants, genomics and preferences, in addition to traditional medical information will be leveraged by providers to influence a person’s healthy behaviors and outcomes.
Trusted intelligence drives participation and engagement
Trusted intelligence systems will emerge to secure the confidence and participation of consumers and other stakeholders. Increasing mobility, transparency and availability of health information bring both benefits for consumers and clinicians but simultaneously also increase the risk associated with a fluid system. Governance structures, policies and practices must be sufficiently robust and cover the ethical, legal and moral aspects of collecting, storing and sharing of sensitive health data. The onus will be on healthcare organizations to maintain high standards of transparency around the integrity and security of data and devices. The organizations will have to provide clarity around the ownership rights regarding personal data, secondary uses of data and the protection of an individual’s privacy.
A future-ready culture and workforce that embraces digital
Clinicians will need to leverage medical, data and behavioral science knowledge and skills in the near future to deliver the personalized care demanded by patients. To support this shift, health entities must decide now where to invest in education, training and recruiting. Health care organizations will achieve success when they will build from an ecosystem mindset, identifying what data is critical and the right strategy to access it.
