Practically overnight, clinicians, healthcare providers, pharmaceutical companies and payers shifted much of their work onto virtual platforms and other digital technologies. As consumers grappled with a deadly new virus, providers embraced virtual technology in unprecedented numbers so they could continue to serve patients despite restrictions on in-person interactions. In doing so, they packed a decade’s worth of reforms into a few short months. Players across the industry boosted data analytics capabilities to respond to ongoing shifts in healthcare needs, consumer behaviour and the economy. The deployment of digital tools in clinical trials helped companies quickly test whether existing medicines worked against the new virus and enabled the rapid development of COVID-19 vaccines. And work began to shore up the weaknesses evident in the healthcare supply chain. All this took place amid the broader backdrop of changes coursing through the industry and a set of long-standing common issues affecting the health ecosystem. In the years before the pandemic, and in the months since COVID-19 altered the course of history, a series of transformations has been altering traditional paradigms. And they will continue to do so in coming years. These include a heightened focus on well-being and prevention, the push to develop cures in addition to treatments, paying based on outcomes rather than fee-for-service, new developments in gene therapy and precision medicine, cross-industry convergence, and an end-to-end focus on patient and clinician experience. These themes intersect and interact with significant issues, including excessive cost; health inequities; inadequate transparency, interoperability and collaboration; and a general lack of trust.

A year of challenges

Striking the right balance on virtual clinical care

Harnessing data analytics

Evolving clinical trials

Developing supply chain resiliency

A brighter future

Contacts