Why we need to change the centre of gravity in our healthcare system
by Dr Sven Jungmann
“When distance means safety, our current healthcare system simply cannot cope. New technologies are arising, but aren’t enough to fix the problem. So how can deep-seated, lasting change be brought to this sector? We’ve got an idea.”
Of all industries systemically challenged by Covid-19, the healthcare industry revealed the deepest insufficiencies. When the challenge is to adequately attend to thousands of sick and highly contagious people, relying solely on brick and mortar facilities to diagnose and treat patients risks getting non-infected patients getting sick in the process and has uncovered a fundamental flaw in the system.
The centre of the medical industry’s universe are hospitals, which are the most suitable treatment facilities. But with close proximity of patients and hospital staff, hospitals have also become a breeding ground that spreads disease.
The scores of hospital workers that have died from Coronavirus are a devastating testament to this fact.
The slow and steady rise of a growing and ageing population had already triggered an urgent need to change healthcare and revealed how difficult and time consuming it is to implement at the physical level. But Covid-19 laid bare the core issue of this physical and centralised system. In a world where distance means safety, hospitals cannot cope.
Historically, the centralised healthcare system made a lot of sense. The aggregation of knowledge in one space leads to a high degree of collaboration amongst specialists and doctors, driving research and practices to new levels. Each hospital works as a microcosm, providing space and funds for expensive equipment like MRI and CT machines. Medical specialists from different fields work together to treat patients with overlapping conditions.
But today, while the physical importance of treatment centres is still vital for a functioning medical system, at best it’s inefficient and at worst it’s dangerous.
The example of treating cancer patients
In the field of oncology, the consequences for at-risk patients in need of urgent care is clear. While treatment varies, cancer patients typically receive chemotherapy in 21-day intervals, to allow their immune systems, to recover enough to tolerate the next cycle.
However, some patients travel to the hospital with very weak immune systems and under great emotional stress. Often a family has to take time off work to help them. This puts everyone under unnecessary emotional duress and exposes them to other diseases.
And all of this only to find out that they are not well enough to receive the treatment.
Sadly, it took Covid-19 to realise that we can see many of these patients just as well via video call, providing better, more efficient care.
Thankfully, technological advances are making a better system. Apps can improve access to healthcare providers. Wearable devices offer in-depth data, making diagnosis and treatment more precise, and helps users improve their overall lifestyle with biofeedback and personal recommendations.
But purely technological solutions aren’t enough. In other industries we see platform businesses growing beyond pure connection models to hybrid platforms that offer end-to-end solutions merging digital and physical services. This blend of digital and physical services is vital to make the healthcare system safer and more efficient. It does this by bringing medical expertise into people’s everyday lives and homes. This is the key to innovating the healthcare industry to meet the demands of the future.
How do we reach this systemic shift towards a hybrid platform model?
We need comprehensive structural change, pioneered by leaders from business, politics and government all working together. The government must create an environment that enables these changes to take place: the German Digital Care Act is a recent legislative example that does just that.
But corporate leaders with the physical and technological assets necessary to create the digital technology and platform business models (such as Corporate Venture Building) must answer the call. They must initiate the crucial leap forward.
As Harvard Business School Professor Linda Hill, told us during the interview for our book, “leaders are increasingly appreciating what it means to be part of an ecosystem and adopt a more systemic approach to innovative problem solving.”
Bottom Line
By directing our common assets towards making this gravitational shift in the healthcare system, we can modernise our current healthcare model and respond to every patient’s care, more effectively. Even during a pandemic.
If you want to know more about this works in practice, take a look into our book FightBack Now, where we describe in detail how entrepreneurs and established organisations — public and private all the same — can lead our society into a better future.
