Here's How Healthcare Can Avoid Being The Next Blockbuster

Remember Blockbuster Video? At its peak in 2004, Blockbuster had more than 9,000 locations. By 2010, the company was bankrupt. What happened? In short, consumer behavior changed, but Blockbuster didn’t. Streaming video meant customers could skip the entire Blockbuster experience — the trudge to the video store, the lines, movies being out of stock, late fees — and instead enjoy their favorite movies without getting off the couch.
Blockbuster is a cautionary tale about what happens when organizations fail to adapt in a timely way to new technologies and customer preferences. In healthcare, a similar technological transformation is underway which neither hospitals nor digital entrepreneurs can afford to miss. It’s the rise of digital health — sometimes called telehealth or remote care — and it’s upending the traditional in-person, clinic-based care model.

While healthcare providers used to ask, “What can we treat virtually?,” in the age of COVID-19 the question is, “What has to be treated in person?” Even before the pandemic, 72% of patients in one survey expressed an interest in telehealth. By 2019, 11% of U.S. consumers had used telehealth services. In the first months of 2020, as the pandemic tightened its grip, that number surged to 46% — and of these patients, 83% were using telehealth for the first time, an indicator of its growing acceptance. In total, there could be an estimated 1 billion telehealth appointments this year. Although post-pandemic the number of virtual appointments will likely decline, virtual care is here to stay. By one estimate 40% of primary care visits can be achieved through virtual appointments.