Care is designed around people not place
Predicting the future of healthcare and life sciences in 2025
10 minute read
Welcome to the fifth in our series of Life Sciences and Healthcare predictions 2025.
Prediction for 2025. An integrated, digital-first healthcare delivery model signposts patients to the most appropriate care setting. Networks of primary care providers manage population health needs in a patient centric healthcare model. AI enabled remote patient monitoring (RPM) and point of care diagnostics collect and interpret real time data on vital signs. Enhanced Health Care Provider (HCP) to HCP communication provides more coordinated, efficient and cost effective care.
The world in 2025
- Smart technologies have enhanced care delivery. Widespread use of AI-enabled technologies have enhanced services such as pharmacy dispensing, ambulance, radiology and pathology. Virtual command centres manage customer relationships.
- Telehealth services enable continuous RPM. HCPs are alerted if a patient’s condition deteriorates (at home or in hospital) as data is transmitted via the cloud and displayed through real-time dashboards.
- One-stop shop community health hubs. These partner with voluntary, private, health and social care sectors to provide high-quality clinical services such as preventative, rehabilitation and minor urgent care.
Conquered constraints in 2025
- Skills and talent. Multidisciplinary teams collaborate across organisational boundaries. New models of education and training equip staff to use digital technologies, AI and genomics to design services around the patient.
- Funding. Integrated care budgets support population health management. Data driven funding models attracted new stakeholders, driving innovation across the health ecosystem including telehealth services and social prescribing to support equality of access to digital solutions.
- Regulation. Regulators support innovation while promoting public/provider safety. They work with organisations to develop products/solutions based on a security-by-design mind-set and a trustworthy data-exchange framework. Compliance with robust cyber security standards has reduced risks, despite more people using connected medical devices.
- Data and interoperability. Data science and cloud technologies has improved the security, completeness and quality of health and behavioural data. Agreed interoperability standards accelerate data sharing among stakeholders. 5G, cloud and edge computing (and AI algorithms) provide the scale and speed to drive the new virtual health ecosystem.
A snapshot of a patient in 2025: How remote monitoring and delivery personalises antimicrobial therapy
Sally has a history of urine tract infections (UTI). Experiencing symptoms again, she books a virtual appointment with her doctor using her smartphone app.
Dr Richards asks Sally to use a home testing kit to confirm her diagnosis. The immediate results – positive – are uploaded instantly to Sally’s electronic health record. Dr Richards is notified, and through an AI-enabled clinical support tool that looks at Sally’s history and pharmacogenetic profile, she sees which antibiotics are most suitable for her and arranges via the smartphone app for these to be delivered to Sally’s home.
Sally’s doctor also asks her to use a wearable device to assess remotely any signs of intolerance to the antibiotics. Through continuous remote monitoring, Dr Richards sees no inadvertent reaction and Sally reports that her symptoms have cleared.
Evidence in 2020
- Ohio State University’s (OSU) Wexner Medical Center uses bedside tablets that act as virtual care assistants for patients and relatives. The tablet, with the OSUMyChart application, allows patients to see their EHRs, ask questions, view test results, and schedule appointments. Patients can set medication alarms, schedule visits by physicians and relatives, view test results, or read educational material about their diagnosis. Patients can also make minor requests for water, snacks, and even for help going to the toilet, without using a nurse call button.
- HBKiCare, home-monitoring solution jointly marketed by the UAE and Israel. Soon to be released, HBKiCare is a “universal remote healthcare IoT platform” and home care kit. It enables “continuous patient monitoring with maximum flexibility and affordability”, recording electrocardiogram, temperature, pulse, blood oxygen and pressure measurements.
How COVID-19 has accelerated this prediction
Deloitte’s view
Healthcare providers have implemented a major transformation, reorganising services and training staff to work in new ways in unfamiliar teams.
World-wide, there’s been an acceleration in the virtual healthcare technology being adopted, with new ways of working keeping patients safe remotely (e.g. virtual consultations, RPM, and apps/wearable devices for disease monitoring/intervention).
New business models have also been rapidly developed, with medical leaders and hospital boards collaborating with private providers to create the right infrastructure. This includes the tools and training to enable a digital-first health ecosystem to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
Emergency and outpatient ophthalmology video consultation
Between 2018 and 2019, Moorfields Eye Hospital A&E department/satellite clinics treated 100,000 patients. But COVID 19 created two huge challenges: how to manage critical emergencies while minimising hospital visits; and how to provide patient care without the disruption leading to harm or loss of vision. A national roll out of video consultations across the Moorfields network was adopted covering drop ins and scheduled appointments.
Explore more
Our series of ten predictions for the life sciences and healthcare industry looks ahead to the year 2025 to help you see what’s coming and to keep your organisation moving forward.
Browse the predictions series, subscribe and listen to our podcast, and watch our webinar on demand to find out more.
If you would like to discuss any of the points raised in our predictions, please do contact one of our specialists listed below.
Key contacts
Director, UK Centre for Health Solutions
Lead Partner, Public Sector Health
Partner, Public Sector Health
Partner, Government and Public Services NL