A widespread adoption of digital-first tools and preventive care can improve patient outcomes while reducing costs, explained Andrea Feinberg, MD, global health lead of commercial & product at Babylon, in a featured session at the Becker's Telehealth Virtual Forum March 24.
In the session, Dr. Feinberg was joined by Dr. Marcus Zachary, DO, managing director of U.S. value-based care at Babylon, to discuss how artificial intelligence-powered tools can help health systems free up staff time, cut costs and improve patient health.
Here are five takeaways from the session, which Babylon sponsored:
1. Millennials have varied expectations of healthcare. Millennials have overtaken baby boomers as America's largest generation, Dr. Feinberg said. This will present new challenges for the healthcare industry as millennials have different expectations for healthcare, she added.
2. Giving time back to staff can make healthcare more affordable. Today, most healthcare spending falls into two main categories: labor costs for highly trained medical professionals and managing chronic diseases, Dr. Feinberg said.
"To make healthcare much more affordable, we must focus on freeing up our precious and expensive resources — our doctors and nurses — so they can focus on proactively predicting and managing our health and preventing a $10 problem from becoming a $10,000 problem," Dr. Feinberg said.
3. Shifting from "sick care" to preventive healthcare should be a priority. Many healthcare providers are great at treating the symptoms of a condition, but a preventive approach to healthcare should be prioritized to improve patient care and cut costs, Dr. Zachary said.
4. Babylon 360 advances value-based care. Babylon 360 combines AI-powered technology and medical expertise to offer patients 24/7 access to virtual primary care and personalized tips for wellness and prevention, Dr. Zachary said. "We are already seeing that by increasing healthcare access, and delivering whole-person primary care, we can improve health outcomes and reduce costs, bringing value to patients and payers alike," Dr. Zachary said.
5. View AI & technology as a partner, not a replacement. AI, analytics and other technology should be embraced as tools for providers, not a replacement for them, Dr. Feinberg said. "In addition to AI, big data and wearable tech can transform healthcare and enable each doctor to automate key administrative and logistical tasks, which empowers them to care for vastly greater numbers of patients and frees them up to focus on those who need them most," Dr. Feinberg said.
To learn more about Babylon and how its digital-first tools are helping healthcare organizations offer value-based care to patients, listen to the webinar on-demand here or visit Babylon's website.