Five blockades on the road to digital health
Consumers have long been willing to make the healthcare sector more digital. However, this is a sensitive issue, as a BVDW survey from 2015 showed that one in three people are willing to provide sensitive personal health data to their health insurer if they are rewarded in return. However, the five biggest blockades go far beyond pure data protection concerns:Legal and regulatory requirements create legal certainty and enable fair competition. And when it comes to medical quality, clear rules are called for. However, incorrect or outdated regulation can also paralyze innovation and block technological progress. In the digital sector, it is fundamentally important to take a differentiated view of this issue. For example, the categorical ban on remote treatment, which stipulates that medical treatment must always take place in person and not virtually, as well as the general obligation to have a practice, which states that medical treatment is tied to the establishment of a practice, lack any common sense against the backdrop of inadequate healthcare provision, particularly in rural areas.As in most other industries, the structures of health insurance companies date back to the analog age. Although there are now medical apps, for example, that demonstrably provide added medical value or improve the quality of care while meeting high data protection standards, health insurers are finding it difficult to integrate digital solutions. Good and successful approaches such as the tinnitus app Tinnitracks, which some health insurers reimburse on prescription, do exist, but too rarely. There is an urgent need for action here, as the widespread use of such solutions is hindered by the structures of health insurers, which are still trying to preserve the tried and tested.A structural obstacle to innovation in the German healthcare system - especially when it comes to structural and disruptive changes such as the digital transformation - is rooted in the inertia of the joint self-governing bodies of health insurance funds and doctors, which are largely geared towards maintaining the status quo and protecting vested interests. This silo mentality is a serious obstacle to cooperation, neglects the needs of the insured and patients and is slow to react to innovations. In addition to concrete recommendations for action and educational measures, a cultural change is needed above all to break down the silos in the interests of better healthcare.Particularly sensitive and sometimes intimate personal data is processed in the healthcare sector. Data protection and data security are therefore of eminent importance in order to protect the privacy of users and patients and to strengthen trust in the digitalization of the healthcare industry. However, the thicket of data protection regulations in the healthcare sector is particularly complex and for many providers, especially young ones, it is almost impossible to keep track of, let alone understand. Legislators must rise to the challenge of simplifying the regulations and creating clear legal clarity. There also needs to be an enlightened social discourse on data protection and privacy in the digital age.Despite all the progress: Digital health services are still a closed book for a large proportion of the population. Added to this is a lack of knowledge about what happens to personal data. All players in the industry have a responsibility to consistently inform and educate people about offers and potential. In the interests of transparency, it must be clearly communicated how and for what purpose the data is used. The establishment of recognized seals of approval or certificates would create additional trust. In order to increase awareness of the services, doctors and health insurance companies need to integrate them into their advisory portfolio.
