Winning in the future of medtech 

Changes in medtech

The future of health is expected to be driven by an omnipresent, proactive, and integrated system of health and well-being where transformational technologies (e.g., artificial intelligence, quantum computing, cloud storage, augmented and virtual reality, and so on)  play a huge role.

When it comes to medtech, we expect that medical devices in the future allow customers to diagnose and perhaps even treat medical conditions at home. And as health care’s focus moves toward prevention instead of treatment, the future devices may alert care teams about potential health issues before they become symptomatic through always-on sensors. As medtech companies’ business models are likely to change dramatically, they should consider collaborating with technology companies to address the increasingly changing needs and expectations of consumers.

To find out what the medtech company of the future will look like (and more), the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions conducted a crowdsourcing simulation with experts across digital health startups, medtech companies, technology companies, health plans, health systems, and research institutions.

Shift in focus

One finding from the research is that medtech companies could differentiate themselves through their ability to harness data gathered by their devices and use it to improve well-being, anticipate on health issues, and help patients to change the day-to-day behaviors that affect their health. In many ways, the data collected from hardware is expected to be more valuable than the hardware itself. Medtech companies, which have traditionally focused on developing hardware as surgical equipment and pacemakers, might have to shift their focus to software, data collection, and data analysis.

This is something they won’t be able to do alone. Rather than focusing on making incremental improvements to their devices, they should focus on using transformative and cognitive technologies to enhance products and offer services. They could do this by developing or partnering to acquire sophisticated data analytics capabilities, getting much closer to the consumer, and leveraging new cognitive technologies to improve operations. Our view is that medtech companies will likely be able to do this best by partnering with consumerfocused technology and specialized digital health companies.

These companies have advanced capabilities, including the ability to collect, store, and analyze vast amounts of health data generated by medical devices (and other sources of vast amounts of data), as well as deep insights on what motivates and engages consumers. Rather than viewing technology companies from outside the health industry as a competitive threat, medtech companies can look at them as potential partners, to access a new large group of consumers, and to remain relevant and financial stable. 

To learn more about what the future holds for medtech companies and how they can change the future of health together with consumer tech companies, read the full report, Winning in the future of medtech: Novel partnerships with consumer tech to transform care delivery.

More information

For more information please contact John de Kok or Mathieu van Bergen using contact details below.