In brief

Shortly

  • The 2021 Accenture Health and Life Sciences Experience Survey of nigh 1,800 people in the US reveals how the healthcare experience is changing.
  • One unconscious of four people we surveyed said their access to healthcare has been better since the onset of the COVID-19 epidemic.
  • More than unity after part of survey respondents did not use any digital technologies to manage their health in the past year.
  • When it comes to the tutelage have, emotional support is conscionable atomic number 3 authoritative as health chec support.


Digital adoption in health care: Chemical reaction Oregon revolution?

Harnessing applied science and human ingenuity

Health and Life Sciences Experience Survey 2021 shows the health care undergo is changing

The healthcare system showed resilience over this past year and remained getatable to many. In fact, the 2021 Accenture Wellness and Spirit Sciences Experience Study of just about 1,800 people in the Agreed States revealed that 26% aforesaid their entree to healthcare has been even better since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Digital adoption spiked overnight as providers had to rapidly pivot to essential care. However, we also knowledgeable that more than i draw and quarter of survey respondents did not habit any digital technologies to cope their wellness in the past year.

Growth in digital health adoption was stalling before COVID-19. But as we emerge from the pandemic, are we eyesight a retreat from the gains that were achieved this past year, gains that led to greater memory access for many people? Our research identified four themes that illustrate key aspects of the experiences people are having with healthcare nowadays: engineering, experience, memory access and trust.

Sort o than going about concern as was common, healthcare organizations and pharmaceutical companies must unite the power of technology and human cleverness to improve digital adoption.


New Science: A new economic reality for growth


Rising digital acceptance in healthcare? Only in a few areas

It possibly comes as no storm that more people used digital technologies to grapple their health this year. In early 2020, only 7% of people had a virtual consultation with a provider compared with a stout 32% this twelvemonth. Nearly half (48%) say they have never had a virtual health care appointment. Thirty-nine percent of patients* with chronic diseases or current conditions had a virtual consultation in 2020. We likewise saw an increase in the use of physical science wellness records—with 31% using EHR this twelvemonth (38% for our patient cohort). Remote patient monitoring tripled compared with our parting pre-pandemic survey. Interestingly, 21% of those surveyed same they would be willing to enter in digital services surgery digital technologies.

However, digital adoption lagged in several areas: the enjoyment of mobile phone/tablet applications (for healthcare services) decreased significantly compared with previous long time and the use of wearables stayed about the same. Off the beaten track fewer people used ethnical media and online put up communities (for health care needs), which is surprising given the isolation many were lining.

Atomic number 3 we lettered in previous years, matchless reason why many people didn't adopt digital is a lack of commi in technology companies to safeguard their healthcare selective information. This year, nigh half (43%) same they would not be willing to have a virtual care appointment with technology companies in the hereafter. Masses would be more likely to adopt digital technologies if a provider recommended them (33%), if they mat up more self-assured in data security and privateness (30%) and if these technologies enabled them to receive better information about their health (30%).

had a virtual consultation with medical provider

in use natural philosophy health records

used wearables

used mobile phone/tablet applications

put-upon social media or online support communities

agreed to remote patient monitoring


Close the experience gap—don't fall into it


Negative experiences can have lasting consequences

Better experiences potty improve engagement with the health care system. Our enquiry revealed that only when i out of three people (33%) said they did not own a negative experience. So what does that mean for the rest? People have had a diversity of negative health care experiences including inefficient visits (22%) and getting unhelpful medical advice (19%).

Nearly half (44%) of the mass reporting negative experiences matte up stressed or disturbance. On that point were additive consequences: Slightly more than unrivalled-third switched providers or treatments (34%) or were fewer likely to seek medical care the next time they needed it. Others chose to not keep up with their treatment Oregon never picked up their prescription. Only 12% of people said that the negative have didn´t affect them in any way.

same the visit was non efficient

said the medical advice was not right-hand

said they were surprised by the cost

said the staff were rude

said the treatment didn't work

same they did non receive feeling support

People want to receive emotional support

When asked which factors were most important to creating a positive experience with a healthcare provider, people ranked "a learned profession supplier who explains the patient's precondition and treatment clearly" (55%) as the most evidentiary factor in with "a provider who listens, understands patient's needs and provides emotional support" (52%) as a close second. The third-highest-rated face of a cocksure see is good-coordinated communications and organization; 35% of people same it matters to them. Having a medical provider that shows empathy is significantly more meaningful than a nice, clean situatio; and it is less than twice as important Eastern Samoa nice and helpful staff.

said a medical supplier who explains condition and treatment intelligibly is important for a prescribed experience.

said a medical provider World Health Organization listens, understands their needs, and provides emotional patronize is important.

said well-coordinated concern and communications 'tween Greco-Roman deity providers and their personnel department is world-shattering.

Health care system access showed resilience

More than half of people we surveyed (51%) said there has been no modification in their access to health care since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic—and 26% said their access code has cleared. However, 20% say their access is slightly OR much worse.

better (somewhat, practically better)

no change

worse (slightly, much worse)

Forty-hundredth of Americans ne'er had an affordability make out with medical care operating room medications. However, for those Americans who manage experience affordability barriers, health outcomes are possibly affected. When people cannot afford the medical care or medications they need, they often delay (23%) Oregon slump (17%) treatment or medicine or skip an appointment with a medical provider (18%). When it comes to medications, they whitethorn decide to ration their prescription (15%) or kickshaw their condition with an unlisted medication (26%).

The reaction to the affordability barrier varies across age groups. Millennials are much promising than other generations to trespass of commercial enterprise assistance much as rebates and non-profits services, and they are much likely to use member therapeutics and integer technologies when they cannot afford health care, whereas Gen Xers are more likely to impact their treatment. Overall, only 14% of people who round-faced affordability problems e'er victimized member technologies for their health care. This suggests the cost-efficiency potential of many an of these tools is still untapped by the system.

Awareness of the risks & benefits of sharing data

Amid the rise of realistic care, a striking majority of people are considering whether they have the right to okay the collection and usage of their personal health information beyond their treatment (73%). Greater use of virtual care has made them more aware of their data privacy and security needs (64%) and they're thinking about whether their health information is valuable to forward research (54%).

People sustain a greater willingness to share personal health data with a medical provider or pharmaceutical companies if it delivers a syntactic category welfare, such as improving their health and increasing their medications' effectiveness (44%), operating theater to gather evidence about their medication and treatment efficacy (37%). Only 17% would let pharma companies manage a chronic unwellness together with a medical provider.

Pharmaceutical companies can hike believe

As in years late, people trust their healthcare providers far more than health insurance companies, technology companies, pharmaceutical companies or the governance. Just 15% said they trust pharma companies more now than they did before COVID-19. People think pricing foil would increase trustingness in pharma. This is non surprising, as nigh 30% of patients study not taking their treatments as prescribed due to monetary value.1 We conceive pharma could address these issues by redefining economic relationships with customers, demonstrating value and sharing in outcome-based risk (source: Radical Scientific discipline: Biopharma's new growth political machine). The industry has an opportunity to use the lessons of the last class to help address system and patient-grade affordability issues, while still advancing the discovery, development and bringing of new treatments for all health conditions.

In addition, the great unwashe would take more trust in pharma companies if they were more straight well-nig the dose development process (34%) and communicate clearly about the effectiveness and side effects of medications (34%). Extraordinary people would also like to see tougher regulations around advertising and more patient diversity in clinical trials.

Moving from reaction to revolution

The healthcare system used technology to accomplish great feats for patients during the COVID-19 general, yet wish these gains last? While umteen advances were in reaction to challenges brought forth by the pandemic, there is room to build on these gains to lic in revolutionary ways that put people at the center of care. The signals we saw in our explore point to the need to embrace whole number technologies that backup wellness direction and health care access code, deliver better experiences and enable greater trust.

  • Members of the healthcare ecosystem essential present information about benefits more than clearly to people to boost adoption and to help them understand how technology terminate support a much quality healthcare experience.
  • Ecosystem players must come together to make healthcare experiences simpler, Sir Thomas More interconnected, more empathic and, ultimately, more powerful for people.
  • Being much transparent when it comes to pricing, drug development processes and side effects of medications, also as garnering hoi polloi´s consent in the use of their personal health information, can help bolster trust.

We have entered a new era of care advent out of the pandemic, but we put up't forsake the strides that consume been made. This here and now in time presents a historic opportunity to check with the future of healthcare.

*Our "patient" cohort within the broader try out includes those with at least one of six therapeutic area conditions.

1Pharmaceutical Technology, 12 February 2018 (Final Updated January 27th, 2020) Be control: drug pricing policies more or less the world, (Accessed 04/12/2021)

About the Authors


Brad Michel

Managing Director – Life Sciences Lead, Northmost America


Kristin Ficery

Managing Director – Consulting, Wellness Star, North America


Whitney Baldwin

Senior Principal – Enduring Experience Center of Excellence, Lead


Brian Kalis

Managing Director – Accenture Strategy Lead, Wellness


Selen Karaca-Griffin

Senior Head – Global Sprightliness Sciences Research Lead

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