McKinsey & Company: Digital Health: An opportunity to advance health equity
Digital health solutions have the potential to make healthcare more equitable. Here’s how innovators can deliver on that promise.
The opportunity for technology and life sciences companies that address health equity challenges with digital innovation is immense, and the downstream economic, financial, and health benefits for society are significant. Leading digital health innovators and investors explored these topics at the 2021 McKinsey Digital Health Conference on Accelerating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Digital Health and offered some early case studies. By building on those topics and case studies, we propose a framework for developing and implementing digital solutions that narrow health equity gaps.
Consider cultural context. Considering patients’ backgrounds can improve their experience with and the efficacy of a digital product, whether it’s a medical device or an interactive platform. While many digital tools integrate various language options, failing to address cultural context remains a barrier to adoption. SameSky Health of North Hollywood, California, partners with health plans to create messages customized for each patient based on their cultural background, language, and preferred mode of communication. Patients receive culturally aligned responses from a real human in one of 30 supported languages via their preferred channel. Lowering linguistic, cultural, and educational barriers helps ensure patients can complete annual wellness checks, satisfy urgent care needs, fulfill their social needs by connecting patients to one another, and manage chronic conditions.
Read the full article from McKinsey & Company here.
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