Healthcare: the designated torchbearer of digital innovation

Most developed nations spend over 10% of their yearly GDP on health-related expenditures. No wonder that the sector is considered the next big frontier of digitalisation. Customer expectations do not recognise boundaries between industries and as “software eats the world” in other areas of life (entertainment, commerce, finance… and now even education and administration are waking from their slumber), healthcare is placed under tremendous pressure to reimagine itself in a connected world. It’s not surprising that the industry all around the globe works hard to create a holistic digital experience to patients that is on par with expectations transported from other, digitally more mature areas (real-time information, booking systems, self-care functions, etc.). 

Industries going through digital transformation right now have a much easier time to reform their operations. Reinventing the wheel became unnecessary here: the digital space has already established its best-practices and expectations. We have no doubt that the above goals will be met during the next five years, abiding the law of gravity centred around customer demand. Will it be easy? By no means, but it will be quicker than expected – and inevitable. Gravity rarely fails to work.

Even so, we think that the healthcare industry is capable of much more than just catching up with the leaders of the digital revolution.