Washington, DC– A recent report from Accenture reveals the economic and deep-rooted value of adding digital solutions to healthcare. Specifically, in order to benefit annual visits, ongoing patient management, and patient self-care.
Through the application of digital health solutions like biometric devices and virtual medical assistants, physicians could become more empowered to gather patient information and consider clinical options for that patient prior to the patient visit, ultimately making for a more efficient annual exam visit.
The report outlines that the US healthcare system and physicians could save an average of 5 minutes per patient seen through the addition of digital health tools. The timesaving equivalent to as many as 18% of the existing primary care physician workforce.
Digital health can also be used to help patients self-manage chronic conditions. In fact, Accenture found that when using virtual health solutions for diabetes care, the time that is freed up for other uses is equivalent to 11% of the primary care physicians
There’s a lot of capacity sitting in U.S. health systems that can be freed by applying digital-enabled productivity strategies,” said Kaveh Safavi M.D., J.D., global managing director of Accenture Health in an official statement. “This type of virtual health can boost the supply of primary care doctors – without adding or training professionals – at a time when there’s a projected shortage of 31,000 professionals expected in the next decade.”
Tools for digital health are shaping the way in which we interact with healthcare professionals and the quality of the care in which we receive. The rising levels of physician burnout mixed with patients becoming more involved in their own healthcare are allowing for digital health solutions to move to the forefront of our care.
About the Author:
As Managing Director of Innovation and Insights for Syneos Health Communications, Leigh is responsible for building and scaling a global team of healthcare experts who together help life science leaders better understand the complex lives, influences and expectations of their customers. Specifically, they uncover actionable insights that fuel empathy and creativity; lead co-creation events that let marketers learn from peers, trends, and new possibilities; and help clients identify the most valuable and useful new customer experiences to create.
Leigh has worked with Fortune 1000 companies to craft their digital, mobile, social and CRM strategies for nearly 20 years.She’s worked for category-leading agencies in retail, public affairs, B2B technology, and higher education. Prior to moving to Syneos Health Communications, she held several leadership roles at our largest agency, GSW. There, she founded an innovation practice fueled by the zeitgeist and spearheaded digital and innovation thinking across the business.
Leigh has taken a special interest in complex healthcare products that can change lives in meaningful ways. She was recently a strategic lead on the 3rd largest launch in pharmaceutical history: Tecfidera. Before that she had keys roles with Eli Lilly Oncology, Abbott Nutrition, Amgen Cardiovascular, and Eli Lilly Diabetes.
A critical part of Leigh’s work is trends and new ideas. Every year, she convenes a group of trend watchers from across our global network to identify the shifts most critical to healthcare marketers. This year, she led over 250 experts to experts to focus on the most important changes in the commercial, consumer, marketing, digital and healthcare landscapes. (See reports at trends.health)
Leigh is a sought-after writer and speaker. Recognized as one of the most inspiring people in the pharmaceutical industry by PharmaVoice and Top 10 Innovation Catalysts of 2017 by MM&M, Leigh also was recognized as a Rising Star by the Healthcare Businesswomen's Association (HBA) for her overt passion, industry thought leadership and significant contributions in new business, strategy and mentoring.
