U.S. health systems are navigating a convergence of pressures — tightening reimbursements, fragile supply chains, mounting cybersecurity risk and the still-unfolding promise of AI. For global medtech companies serving those systems, the mandate is the same: deliver reliable solutions that help providers do more with less.
In a webinar hosted by Becker’s Healthcare and sponsored by Ambu, Britt Meelby Jensen, CEO of Ambu, shared how the company is addressing these challenges through supply chain resilience, single-use endoscopy innovation and a platform-based approach to AI and connected care.
Below are three key themes that emerged during the conversation.
Note: Quotes have been edited lightly for length and clarity.
1. Supply chain resilience starts with ‘no-regret’ moves
Global instability has pushed supply chain continuity to the top of Ms. Meelby Jensen’s priorities. Ambu’s response centers on what she calls “no-regret moves” — actions that strengthen the business regardless of how the external environment shifts. That includes rebalancing manufacturing so the U.S. market is increasingly supported from facilities in North America, with production across U.S., Mexican, Malaysian and Chinese sites that can absorb disruptions quickly.
The organization has also moved to reduce its structural exposure to commodity volatility. Ms. Meelby Jensen noted Ambu became the first medical device company to integrate bioplastic — derived from bio-based second-generation feedstock, such as food and waste — across its endoscope portfolio. The material substitution simultaneously reduces dependence on fossil-based plastics tied to crude oil prices and cuts the product’s environmental footprint.
“For U.S. healthcare customers, the goal for us is very simple in times of geopolitical instability,” she said. “That is to secure reliable availability of our solutions, and fewer surprises.”
2. Single-use endoscopy addresses the full cost equation, not just device price
With Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement tightening, health system leaders cannot simply pass cost pressures downstream. Ms. Meelby Jensen argued that the financial case for single-use endoscopy goes well beyond the per-unit price of the device, and that the real pressure point is the inefficiency and unpredictability baked into reusable scope workflows.
Single-use eliminates the time and infrastructure costs of reprocessing; reduces cancellations caused by unavailable equipment; and removes the variable expense of repairs, servicing and loaner scopes. Ms. Meelby Jensen said some U.S. customers report treating 50% more patients per day after switching from reusable to Ambu’s single-use scopes — throughput gains achieved without adding staff or infrastructure.
Scalability across care settings is another advantage. Because all Ambu endoscopes run on a single platform, health systems can expand to outpatient and ambulatory surgery center sites without replicating the fixed investment required for reprocessing infrastructure.
3. AI is only as valuable as it is secure and simple
Ms. Meelby Jensen sees clear potential in AI but is disciplined about how Ambu applies it. The company’s EndoIntelligence platform targets three phases of the procedure journey: training and preparation, real-time guidance during procedures to improve precision and decision-making, and post-procedure documentation automation to reduce administrative time.
The governing principle is subtraction, not addition. “When it adds complexity, that’s when it doesn’t work,” Ms. Meelby Jensen said. She also emphasized building cybersecurity into the software platform design from scratch, ensuring procedure data transfers safely into hospital records, and having robust incident response processes in place should something go wrong.
She also noted that adoption rates vary — something Ambu has seen both internally and with customers — and that building AI into workflows takes sustained engagement and change management.
The bottom line for health system leaders
When asked what leaders most need to get right over the next few years, Ms. Meelby Jensen pointed to scalability — the ability to deliver more care, more consistently, across more sites without adding disproportionate cost or complexity.
She framed Ambu’s role as helping health systems meet that challenge rather than navigate it alone: streamlining endoscopy through a single integrated platform, eliminating structural dependencies on reprocessing and gradually layering in AI to reduce administrative burden.
“Our role is not to make things more complex, it’s very much the opposite,” she said. “It’s to help health systems absorb the pressure that they see by driving scale and efficiency.” Her closing point was that this support ultimately serves one goal: keeping clinicians focused on reliable, high-quality patient care even when the broader system is under strain.
At the Becker's 11th Annual IT + Revenue Cycle Conference: The Future of AI & Digital Health, taking place September 14–17 in Chicago, healthcare executives and digital leaders from across the country will come together to explore how AI, interoperability, cybersecurity, and revenue cycle innovation are transforming care delivery, strengthening financial performance, and driving the next era of digital health. Apply for complimentary registration now.
