The Future of Health is (almost) here… my key takeaways from The Future of Health Conference

Reflecting on some of my key takeaways from The Future of Health conference brilliantly organized by CB Insights and hosted in New York last week.

 ·      Healthcare needs a new front door, one that is virtual and more accessible, but also one that is powered by data and can generate personalized recommendations and accurate triage. The race for funding and for user acquisition is on – as VCs predict a more challenging environment moving forward, all eyes will be on the real outcomes and efficiencies delivered by digital health companies…

·      The transition to value-based care is underway, causing a shift in incentives and market dynamics as key players gear up for the new model (case in point with Medicare Advantage plans in the US): incumbents are merging into large ‘payviders’ able to reap the benefits of the efficiencies they create, ‘insurgents’ are deploying digital first and tech enabled care models to challenge the status quo, and while this dynamic plays out Amazon and Walmart are certainly watching with interest…

·      The winner won’t bring the next best solution, they will bring existing solutions together, for digital health to realize its full potential, interoperability needs to be addressed – solutions, and more importantly the underlying data they host need to talk to each other and form a single, actionable version of the truth. Synergistic partnerships forming cohesive digital health ecosystems will be at the heart of new, innovative business models…

·      'Your margin is my opportunity' (J. Besos), pharmaceutical companies among other incumbents need to transform fast to avoid falling 'gradually, then suddenly' like so many other established industries overtaken by tech players. Some lessons learnt from the past: think twice before dismissing insurgents, reconsider your build v. buy (or partner) ratio, define and monitor success with relevant metrics, invest in culture and ways of working as key enablers of your transformation...

Feeling energized in my role to bring digital health companies and pharma together to shape the Future of Health!