Virtual and Retail Healthcare

Virtual healthcare enhances access and equity with remote consultations, optimising the patient experience at home. Retail healthcare excels in customer-friendly, in-person services, boosting accessibility and convenience. Both are reshaping healthcare through innovation, personalised care, and enhanced efficiency.

With virtual healthcare, patients can access medical care from anywhere. It also reduces the need for physical infrastructure and in-person visits, thus lowering costs for both providers and patients. A patient-centric retail healthcare approach focuses on convenience, speed, and service quality. Effective integration with patients' primary care providers is important to ensure continuity of care. Retail healthcare must also adhere to healthcare regulations and standards.

The success of virtual and retail healthcare depends on robust technological infrastructure. It is also crucial to ensure the privacy and security of patient data in virtual settings. Both virtual and retail healthcare models aim to improve access, convenience, and affordability, making healthcare more patient-friendly and adaptable to patient needs. However, each has its own set of challenges and limitations that must be managed to ensure high-quality care.

In this issue, our contributors explore the status quo and look into real and available applications and solutions.

In an innovative round-up on virtual and remote care, Thierry Godelle reports on the latest real-world insights obtained through conversations with various digital therapeutics leaders. Bishan Nandy goes over the best practices in strategic planning, technology integration, and patient engagement for the operational success of outpatient clinics.

José A. Cano and Alan Zettelmann share their experience of the CardioManager app roll-out in Spain, demonstrating that combining traditional treatments with wearable technologies and mobile applications can enhance health management by improving patient adherence, enabling continuous monitoring, and reducing healthcare costs.

Samar Abdelsalam deep dives into how telenursing bridged the gap between patients and healthcare providers through innovative communication technologies, promising to reshape the landscape of patient care and nursing practice. The Lovexair Foundation explores maximising telehealth adoption to enhance patient care by focusing on human-centric solutions that improve communication, trust, and accessibility.

Bragadeesh Sundararajan explores how AI multimodality is transforming retail healthcare by integrating diverse data sources for more accurate diagnostics, personalised treatments, and real-time monitoring. Precious Chisom Uzoeghelu offers insight into the impact virtual reality can bring in healthcare, enhancing patient care through advancements in pain management, rehabilitation, and mental health treatment.

Ismail Moolahighlights the critical role of contract management and compliance in healthcare organisations, exploring why they are indispensable pillars for success.Iffi Wahla discusses how medical practices can leverage AI to improve service and profitability.

In a hectic year in EHR contract activity, purchases affected 734 hospitals and over 128,000 beds. Global EHR growth is expected to rise, driven by government initiatives and investments, with KLAS tracking trends and market share worldwide. KLAS Research also presents its cybersecurity benchmark for the healthcare industry.

Susana Alvarez Gómez highlights the importance of measuring health outcomes through efficacy, effectiveness, and efficiency, emphasising value-based care and strategic procurement for sustainable, high-quality healthcare.

We hope you will like this issue and find it helpful. As always, your feedback is more than welcome.

Happy Reading!