Dr. Azad Moopen, Founder Chairman and Managing Director, Aster DM Healthcare
As per WHO, almost half of the world lacks access to essential health services and over 100 million are
pushed into poverty due to out-of-pocket health expenses. This stark reality was brought to the
forefront during the pandemic very strongly with public healthcare systems across the world collapsing
to manage and cater to increasing demands. More than ever the need to make quality healthcare
affordable and accessible on time has been felt strongly.
While it is important to increase the healthcare spend as a percentage of GDP by the developing
countries, the key to the penetration is digitization. This will make at least primary healthcare available
even in the remotest corners of the world through the ubiquitous mobile phones.
As we step into 2022, with renewed vigor to deliver our Caring Mission with a Global Vision to serve the
world with quality healthcare that is affordable and accessible, we at Aster DM Healthcare remain at the
forefront of adopting digital technology. We hope this will help us to enable access to millions to our
services in a cost-effective way. As a blessing in disguise, Covid-19 has played the role of a catalyst in
pushing the sector to innovate and come up with need of the hour solutions.
We anticipate the following trends to gain momentum and define the future of healthcare.
Seamless patient experience through Omni Channel
With patients increasingly wanting to access healthcare services from the comfort of their homes or
work, many hospitals and healthcare providers have pivoted with the implementation of digitized,
virtual solutions to strengthen logistics and serve customers remotely. This model of care enables
provider communities to reach wider customer base beyond geographical boundaries with virtual care.
This Omni Channel ensures delivery of cost-effective care like consultation, investigation, delivery of
medicines and home care, without adding expensive physical infrastructure
Telemedicine, Remote Monitoring
Telehealth, remote monitoring, E-ICU care, Teleradiology, Tele-pathology will see many countries come
to the forefront to take on outsourced services at low cost with better qualitative and quantitative
efficiency. UAE can emerge as the clinical excellence hub for patients from Africa, Middle East and the
Indian subcontinent which is serving more than 1 billion population. Visit to the hospitals can be
reduced to major medical problems and follow-up can be carried out remotely.
The pandemic proved to be a huge impetus as Clinicians and Patients both realized that through the use
of technology they can easily reach and engage with each other while remaining safe. At Aster DM
Healthcare, we saw a sharp uptick in the demand for telemedicine services which enabled us to onboard
800 doctors across GCC and India who managed to provide more than 100,000 consultations within just
8 months of service introduction.
Smart Hospitals or Hospitals 4.0
According to UN, the world population is expected to exceed 8.5 billion people by 2030 and by 2050, the
number of people over the age of 60 will double in comparison to 2015. The age group of 60+ is also the
population segment that requires the most amount of medical care, hospitalization and care continuum.
To be able to meet this growing need with available resources, hospital systems will be required to
undergo digital transformation and introduce ‘smart’ infrastructure through extensive use of emergent
technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Data Analytics and Internet of Things (IOT), to create more
integrated and efficient spaces, suited to the needs of the patients and the providers.
This also led to adoption of Smart hospital systems and electronic medical record systems, with
regulators working alongside insurance payers to drive standardization and automation. This has already
brought in efficiency in-terms of operational excellence, better utilization of resources and available
manpower, addressing one of the key concerns of many healthcare providers regarding high operational
costs and limited availability of talented healthcare professionals to serve patients. This has also laid the
grounds for a more sustainable future for the healthcare business.
Staying ahead of the curve
Digital Transformation is the game changer in healthcare which is set to revolutionise healthcare
delivery. The transformation is expected to be positive and solve many of the issues deterring wider and
affordable access. Healthcare providers who do not evolve and adapt with the changing times will fall
behind in the race and become extinct. Healthcare technology space is becoming increasing popular
with start-ups and SMEs innovating as per market pulse and introducing quick solutions.
The future of healthcare is shaping up in front of us. You will see humanoid robots in many hospitals —
many will be unseen, sitting inside computers and providing diagnosis and treatment protocols to help
the doctors. Wearables and trackers with remote monitoring has already become quite popular and will
increase significantly. 3D printing of organs, Remote Robotic Surgeries, genomic sequencing and
treatment of genetic diseases through crisper technology, focus on nanotechnology in diagnosis and
treatment, personalized medicine depending on your genetic structure etc. will be common-place.
The healthcare sector has lagged behind in digitalization in the last 50 years when many other sectors
like banking, retail etc leapfrogged. Healthcare is catching up and shall be the focus in the next 10 years
with a major transformation through innovation happening in the decade, which will have a major
impact on healthcare of the world population.
