CX Insights - Trend Watch - Healthcare Industry (ICYMI 3rd Quarter 2023)
ICYMI - As in our previous healthcare blogpost, we have been monitoring healthcare vendors' headlines and identified what trends shaped up during the third quarter.
The healthcare industry is undergoing a rapid transformation as new technologies and business models continue to evolve and improving members/patients' experiences continue to be the catalyst for many of these changes. Here are three trends that are shaping the future of healthcare and how some of the leading players are adapting to them.
| TREND 1: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) & GENERATIVE AI
How can AI help revolutionize the healthcare industry? Easy: it enables faster, more accurate and more personalized diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases. Already providers are adopting this plus a new subset of AI called Generative AI. For the layman, Generative AI creates new data or content from existing data or content, such as images, text, or audio. This means synthetic medical images for training or testing purposes, generating novel drug candidates, or producing realistic patient avatars for telehealth are near-certain outcomes for those who adopt this cutting-edge tech early.
Apple Health coming in 2024?: While AI is still catching on in the healthcare market, UC Davis Health is wasting no time in remaining ahead of the curve by launching VALID AI. This platform, launched in collaboration with dozens of founding partners, aims to not only create a framework for other health providers to implement Generative AI into their offerings, but to do so ethically and responsibly.
Kaiser AI on the case: Kaiser Permanente recently implemented an AI-based chatbot, KP Chat, to help patients discover what care and treatment options may be right for them, having piloted the program in 2022 and rolled it out in late July 2023. Kaiser reps maintain that this tool will in no way replace physician-to-patient interaction, but instead acts as a funnel to better guide medical professionals to more rapid diagnoses and lighten clerical loads for doctors everywhere.
We’ve got a code Azure: Microsoft and Teladoc joined forces to integrate their AI services. The result? The best of both worlds, with Microsoft’s Azure Health Bot providing natural responses styled like a first point of contact at a doctor’s visit, while Teladoc’s Solo platform routes right-fit doctors to patients.
| TREND 2: PLATFORMIZATION & PARTNERSHIP
Pop quiz: What is platformization? It’s the process of creating a digital platform that connects different stakeholders in an ecosystem, such as providers, payers, consumers, and third-party services. We see this already with healthcare apps that provide greater access, convenience, choice, and value for any service a business provides. But I'm placing partnership alongside platformization in this section to illustrate just how beneficial collaboration with other players in the health ecosystem is for patients of all types. As you'll read, mix platformization and partnership together and you get …
Optum-enhanced Ubers aplenty: Uber has been busy partnering with multiple healthcare providers to ensure patients make it to their doctor appointments. Through deals with Through deals with Optum, UnitedHealth’s services division, as well as Mount Sinai Health System American Cancer Society and Walgreens, programs like Medicare Advantage will be eligible to pay for non-emergency medical rides and supply runs.
Pushing the Instacart up Mount Sinai: It’s not just Uber that’s made a home at Mount Sinai Health System. Instacart is offering same-day prescription and over-the-counter medication delivery services through the New York-based health provider. This news comes around the same time Alignment Healthcare, Inc. announced partnerships with Instacart to offer co-branded meal delivery to seniors in their network.
Amazon Clinic officially launches virtually: Across the entire nation – all 50 states and D.C. – Amazon Clinic is now accepting patients! What began as a pilot in 2019 and a formal announcement in November 2022 has become the successor to the now-defunct Amazon Care. While Amazon does not accept insurance, they do have a flat fee for message-based and video-based consultations.
| TREND 3: PERSONALIZATION & CUSTOMIZATION
We all know that when it comes to something as personal as user experience, personalization and customization is everything. Tailoring products or services to individual needs, preferences, or characteristics of each customer is a touchpoint that is vital in today's service world. Here's how providers are enhancing customer satisfaction, loyalty, and engagement by delivering more relevant and valuable experiences for their buck:
Cigna/Virgin members unite!: Cigna Healthcare and Virgin Pulse, both health benefits companies in their own right, joined forces to launch a more personalized health experience on myCigna. Using Cigna’s health coaching/wellness programs and Virgin Pulse’s behavior change sensors, this new platform aims to use tools like gamification, social media and notifications to help users build healthy lifestyles.
Further augmentation for Blue Cross plans: Recognizing a need for further tailor-fit options for employer-funded plans, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan recently rolled out just that. Blue Cross Coordinated Care will roll out in 2024 and promises holistic, personal offerings that employers can use to help their employees decide which plan is right for them.
An update on Cost Plus: In one of our previous blogposts we reported that Mark Cuban’s venture into healthcare, Cost Plus Drug Company, was gaining attention for its flat fee prescription model. Today, that approach has led health insurers to view this new company as a better alternative to traditional pharmacies – most notably evidenced with Blue Cross Blue Shield California dropping CVS Health’s Caremark for Cost Plus.
We will continue to monitor the industry news and periodically share with you what we consider the trending topics benefiting customer experience. As a CX service provider, we are excited to partner with our healthcare clients to maximize any opportunities these trends bring.
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