Fluency for a disruptive healthcare environment

From my position within Sharecare and our larger industry, I take great interest in both affecting how we improve health outcomes and studying other forces at play in this evolution. It’s an exciting time to be engaged in health innovation because our industry is ripe for integration, consumerization and forms of disruption we have yet to see.

In the recent PwC Health Institute research report, “The New Health Economy in the age of disruption,” I explained that fluency in three languages – healthcare, technology, and media – will set apart the companies that thrive and struggle in this rapidly changing industry. 

Why does fluency in these areas make such a significant difference for healthcare organizations?

The way we do business must change in tandem with the healthcare ecosystem. Technology has enabled people to become more connected to resources, media and information than ever, and as a result, they have more power to influence their own healthcare decisions. At the same time, technology is enabling us to apply data and learnings to better predict and respond to the needs of the consumer, as well as their care providers. 

But no matter the point of impact or the audience served – be it the patient, their provider, employer or payer – health innovation today must be rooted in an understanding of these three languages, including the current conversations and happenings within them. With this as a foundation, organizations in our industry – both usual suspects and new or nontraditional players – have limitless potential to contribute in ways that are both relevant to today’s healthcare ecosystem and bear the interconnectivity to deliver on the ultimate value proposition: longer and healthier lives.