
This brief overview will discuss various innovative healthcare solutions such as precision medicine, telemedicine, and wearable tech that have emerged to deliver healthcare more effectively.
These innovations should improve access, drive efficiency, and enhance patient-quality care delivery systems.
Even though these goals may be well-intentioned, their fulfillment fails to match the reality for Indias marginalized socio-economic communities.
Only 3.6% of GDP is allocated towards health care expenditure, with only 1.3% coming from public funds - meaning individuals have to bear most of the costs themselves when paying medical bills out-of-pocket; total household expenditure on health accounts for 58.7% annually, pushing 7% below the poverty line each year due to out of pocket health costs alone.
An increasing lack of affordable access to healthcare has led to creative innovations being proposed by government agencies, non-government organizations, and corporations to address it - These innovations also improve the efficiency and effectiveness of care delivery; in this article are some notable innovative healthcare solutions.
New Healthcare Solutions

Mobile Telemedicine (TMC)
Medicine home delivery app development mobile TMC represents an innovative step toward improving access to healthcare, effectively eliminating concerns over Indias low doctor-to-patient ratio of 0.62 doctors for every 1000 people.
The use of ICT by healthcare professionals for exchanging patient-related data is of utmost importance to facilitate diagnosis, treatment protocols, and all other facets of healthcare delivery effectively. India received an essential boost to TMC in 2001 when ISRO connected Chennais Apollo Hospital with Apollo Rural Hospital in Chittoor District in Andhra Pradesh via ISRO linkage.
Since then, TMC has flourished. Government programs like Ayushman Bharat Yojana and National Informatics Centre utilize TMC services extensively in their healthcare delivery to reach every corner of India.
At the same time, private hospitals like Asia Heart Foundation and Amrita Institute for Medical Sciences and social development organizations like Philips Healthcare or Piramal Swasthya also make extensive use of them.
TMC implementation has been slow despite its apparent promise. This is particularly evident in remote and rural parts of India, where this technology-enabled healthcare service remains unfamiliar to patients and providers, leading them to reject new technologies outright.
Public and private sectors must work collaboratively to improve training, orientation, behavior, and resource availability issues.
Electronic Health Records and E-health
E-Health and TMC development go hand-in-hand. In 2017, for instance, the National Informatics Centre launched their e-Hospital Program which allows patients to register remotely for essential healthcare services with unique ID numbers assigned for each registrant.
ANM Online also serves this function by collecting reproductive and child health data across the nation into one central repository for tracking postnatal/antenatal care deliveries as well as postpartum recovery processes.
Private sector clinics offering diagnostic testing via eLAJ clinics in rural Karnataka, Rajasthan, and other states benefit the community with accessible EHRs created using AADHAR numbers.
EHR and e-health will enhance healthcare delivery in three main ways:
- They are making treatment more reactive rather than predictive.
- It is increasing the accuracy of diagnoses and treatments.
- Impacting clinical outcomes while anticipating seasonal outbreaks and NCDs - relieving human resources of tedious data entry tasks.
Accessible Medical Records Via Integrated Technologies is another significant effort by Piramal Swasthya implemented with public health in mind.
The AMRIT platform creates electronic records of primary care beneficiaries using unique IDs; frontline staff use AMRIT for tracking referrals and managing beneficiaries, while the government makes evidence-based decisions using high-quality data sets from AMRIT.
India still lacks widespread EHR adoption. Kerala is an exception where they successfully collected and stored electronic health records of 2.58 million individuals as part of an eHealth project for the public sector.
Apollo Hospital, Narayana Healthcare, and Arvind Eye Care have implemented EHR systems as private facilities as part of their services.
To promote EHR adoption among more public and private facilities, efforts should focus on (i) strengthening ICT infrastructure (ii) training staff on EHR usage, as well as emphasizing its importance, and (iii) offering government incentives via an EHR portal.
Self-Reporting/Self-Managed Health Applications
Applications (apps) that enable individuals to track and manage their health are becoming more widespread as most Americans now own smartphones.
Many such applications use subtle methods of encouraging natural impulses - for instance, HealthifyMe uses algorithms that use regular information about diet, exercise routine, and weight to provide feedback to its user on his mobile phone regarding the ideal diet, length of daily workout sessions recommended, etc. Similar apps allow you to track your water intake, steps taken, calories burned, etc.
These apps may encourage healthy behaviors, yet the digital divide severely limits their impact.
Most applications available online are written exclusively in English, excluding many people. At the same time, their clinical validation and benefits to health have yet to be documented leaving much room for speculation regarding efficacy and effectiveness.
Funding must be allocated for practical scientific evaluation to strengthen these applications, with partnerships among public- and private-sector entities and privately held companies strengthened to enhance quality and impact.
Related:- Guide To On-demand Medicine Delivery App Development in 2022
Digital Management of Medical Supplies
Essential medications and pharmaceutical supplies must always be readily available for healthcare delivery to run efficiently, necessitating an online procurement system with real-time updates on product availability.
An example is Indias Aushadhi program implemented across 16 States to fulfill this need and meet district drug store demands without delay.
E-VIN also assists the Government of Indias Universal Immunization Program through accurate time information about vaccine stock levels, temperatures of storage, etc., via its mobile application.
Since its implementation across 21 Indian states, it has reduced shortages by more than 80% while contributing towards an availability rate exceeding 99.994% at all cold chain points.
All districts should increase efforts to manage medical necessities digitally. Public-private partnerships may be utilized as part of this initiative to increase efficiency and reach.
E-Pharmacies
E-commerces explosive growth can also be observed when accessing medicine. While still relatively young, Indias online pharmacy market had a share of $9.3 Billion of global ePharmacy sales as of 2019.
This number is projected to more than triple by 2023 based on increasing internet penetration and online shopping habits among urban Indians - as well as programs such as Jan Aushadhi Program of India in conjunction with digital media; popular ePharmacy platforms among them NetMeds PharmEasy MedLife are private sector offerings among others.
Rural India remains relatively unaware and out of the reach of ePharmacy platforms.
Thus, there remains much room for expansion regarding rural onboarding. With limited pharmacies in rural and remote locations, online pharmacy access could be critical in meeting medical needs more efficiently.
Therefore, partnerships between the Digital India Program (DIP) and these ePharmacy platforms must be strengthened for successful rural onboarding.
The Drugs and Cosmetics Act is currently the only legislation that permits online pharmacies to register.
Unfortunately, however, its many ambiguities prevent clear definitions of over-the-counter drugs. Therefore, registered e-pharmacies must provide detailed regulations as part of their business structure.
Mohalla Clinics
Mohalla Clinics are an initiative of the Delhi state government. Since their introduction, these clinics have gained widespread traction as an affordable primary healthcare solution for families living in marginalized parts of Delhi.
Furthermore, this no-cost model reduces out-of-pocket health expenses for low-income families in the capital city.
Budget allocation to clinics was reduced between 2018-19-20 by about 7 percent despite their success in increasing accessibility, affordability, and availability of primary health care.
To maintain stable budgets at clinics and ensure access to primary health care in urban areas, advocacy must take place and alternative funding/grant sources explored; research on scaling up these models across other parts of the nation must occur, with political considerations being kept at bay as barriers.
Challenges in Innovating Solutions

There are challenges in implementing innovative solutions to ensure equitable access to healthcare.
Knowledge Gap in the Community
Lack of information makes accessing services difficult for local communities, as most innovations are new ways to get healthcare.
Training, awareness sessions, and orientations can help to address this problem.
Changes in Social Behavior
Adopting innovative practices and ways of working is crucial to adopting innovations.
It is often difficult for healthcare service providers and patients to alter their comfortable, established behaviors. To address this, it will be necessary to share correct information with healthcare providers and their patients about this changes perceived need and benefits.
It will also require appropriate and culturally relevant behavior change communication via IEC and IPC.
Human Resource Capacity
Human resources, such as ASHAs, ANMs, and other healthcare providers are not always equipped to use and navigate tech-enabled services.
It required initial guidance and hands-on instruction.
Technical and Logistical Challenges
It results from the lack of regular power, internet access, etc. In rural areas and remote locations.
Budgeting and Costing
Innovations are usually novel approaches that havent gained widespread acceptance.
There is no data to support its utility and functionality. Initiating innovative and new methods and processes requires a significant investment. These two challenges reduce the funding options for innovative solutions.
To overcome the cost and funding constraint in Innovation, partnerships (public-private or private-private), research on financially optimal ways to implement innovative solutions, and partnerships to encourage adoption can be used.
The Following is a Brief Introduction to the Topic:

Ready to use medicine delivery app development past performances at the NHS have made us world leaders in developing and testing innovative new technologies.
Yet, challenges still exist: How can proven innovations quickly be adopted as best practices across the healthcare system, rather than commercial success originating overseas as has often been the case in the past? For Innovation to benefit patients directly and meaningfully in the future. If we genuinely wish for positive change. The situation must alter.
Adopting new healthcare technologies is no exception:
- Telephones took 64 years to reach 40% adoption.
- Electricity took 37.
- Computer technology took 23 and 16 respectively, for mobile phones and radio.
Successful companies listen to customers before innovating; they identify critical problems with experts, customers, and stakeholders, then collaborate in finding solutions before creating an adoption and diffusion strategy - creating an atmosphere that fosters Innovation within staff members.
Innovation in Healthcare: The Challenge

If we want to innovate successfully, the NHS must address a few key challenges:
- Budgets are tight - NHS must make savings to bridge the funding gap estimated at PS22 billion between patient needs and available resources.
- Demand is rising - our population lives longer and, more often than not, with multiple diseases.
- As clinical needs increase, the need for new working methods is often first to be sacrificed.
- Public expectations are increasing
- Accepting failure is part of Innovation. There are no penalties for adhering to customs or practices. However, if you attempt innovation and fail, it can have severe repercussions on the board/trust of the clinical commissioning group.
Create a Culture of Innovation

NHS employees have many great ideas to improve the patient experience and system.
We must foster a culture that encourages innovation and empowers staff to be involved. Many building blocks for a culture of Innovation are already present.
Accessing Funds for Innovation

Access to sufficient funding allows new ideas to develop and be adopted on a large scale.
In the UK, public and private sources of financing continue to become increasingly abundant; however, public funds remain scarce so NHS staff need to be better informed of what resources exist.
Enterprise investment scheme tax incentives continue to draw capital and talent worldwide, particularly those outside the UK.
UK academic institutions and universities have developed technologies that support accelerator programs like Entrepreneur First; such programs help transform academic ideas into commercially viable enterprises.
NHS challenge prizes, local hospital innovations prizes, and academic health sciences networks may offer limited funding opportunities to develop innovative ideas.
Academic health sciences networks have also contributed to various funding schemes, including the national innovation accelerator, which targets people working on innovative products, and the small business research initiative, which gives money directly to small companies so that innovative products may address unmet needs. Finally, the National Institute for Health Research offers various funding schemes which support medical innovations.
Addressing Key Issues

In healthcare, there are several areas where Innovation is hindered. If we want to see Innovation, then these are the areas that need to be addressed.
Data Sharing is Just as Crucial as Privacy
Handling confidential patient data is a fundamental element of many NHS innovations.
It has often been one of the most significant obstacles to market launch. Due to this risk, many NHS organizations have constructed firewalls around their systems as a preventative measure against attacks; digital health records have even been used as tools against innovation.
NHS England has recognized the need for improved processes and pledged to streamline information governance tools and processes to create a consistent approach and eliminate duplicate assessment work.
NHS England acknowledged room for improvement, so it has pledged to streamline information governance tools and processes while taking measures towards providing a standardized information governance approach and eliminating duplication from assessment work.
The Interoperability of Healthcare Systems is Essential to Improve Quality, Safety, and Efficiency
Over the past decade, electronic records have quickly replaced paper in most UK GP practices and trusts.
Still, digitization of NHS Health Records remains a lengthy, complicated, and sometimes daunting challenge, with multiple systems having interoperability problems. Wachters report recommends setting an achievable deadline of 2023 as the ultimate aim.
Digitizing records is the starting point to improving healthcare delivery, with tangible benefits becoming apparent once all systems have been linked together - this includes enterprise systems, apps from third parties and systems specifically for patients.
We now can begin extracting insights from data sets for action that improve safety, quality, and efficiency - working towards interoperability and digitization as part of this initiative in the UK. Implementing the Wachter Report will create an ecosystem of interconnected, mixed systems that form the basis of future health innovations.
The Intellectual Property Policy Shouldnt Stifle Innovation
Intellectual property must be treated fairly and rationally to foster innovation within the NHS.
Otherwise, great ideas risk never realizing their full potential and serve neither patients nor the NHS. Legal issues related to patents act patents, employment contracts both nationally and locally, as well as between NHS England/clinical commissioning groups/providers must all be taken into consideration; for example, in 2001, when smartphones had just taken off and before the internet growth had started its ascent were published framework and guidance regarding managing intellectual property within NHS, which proved essential in maintaining innovation within healthcare delivery system.
Establishing an environment in the NHS where Innovation can flourish requires proper funding, guidance, and support mechanisms.
This goal can be accomplished with sufficient investment.
App Development Education and Medical Device Regulation
Regulations can thwart many great ideas. For NHS app developers, confusion over medical app regulations has proven problematic.
In late 2016, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency published a welcome guide that provided greater detail of its assessment process. Meanwhile, in America, the Food and Drug Administration wants to regulate specific apps used to enhance or transform mobile platforms into devices regulated under FDA oversight.
An accessible guide that assists healthcare professionals in creating medical apps to comply with regulatory standards would be extremely valuable to healthcare providers. An accessible yet concise manual on developing apps that meet regulatory standards could prove extremely valuable for developing them efficiently and responsibly.
Small Businesses Face a Significant Challenge When It Comes to Procurement
It is easy to become confused by the NHSs procurement processes. They can be complex and overly bureaucratic.
In 2012, the coalition government recognized this issue. It published an action program to help small and mid-sized businesses sell to the NHS. The central theme of the plan was to increase transparency and engage with small businesses to double Department of Health spending with SMEs over the next two years.
This mission has been made more accessible by the fifteen Academic Health Sciences Networks in the UK. They have connected small businesses to the NHS and its many components, making Innovation more accessible.
Testing and Prototyping Innovations in the Clinical Setting
To be introduced, all devices, services, and pathways must have evidence that they are superior to the current offerings, at an affordable price.
This evidence can be challenging to obtain without the ability to test and develop prototypes in clinical settings or with patients. The NHS is the leading integrated healthcare system in the world, and it offers a unique opportunity to innovators.
In January 2016, NHS created seven "test beds" to allow global innovators to work with NHS organizations to assess the impact of technology in real life. These test beds aim to partner with global innovators and NHS organizations.
Systemic Challenges of Promoting and Scaling Up Innovation
Innovative ideas within the NHS may show great promise, yet few have reached beyond a local region or site.
Innovations explicitly developed for regional needs may not necessarily have negative repercussions if implemented across all sites or systems in which they reside. First, more energy must be expended across different areas to address one issue. Second, numerous local solutions lead to an organization that lacks common integration points - leading to "let a million flowers bloom." Focusing too early may interfere with innovation development.
Healthcare businesses face an additional difficulty with Innovation: distinguishing flowers and weeds when projects develop without proper management and evaluation processes.
At its heart, the NHS took an innovative and pragmatic approach by encouraging Innovation at both a local level as well as on a national scale and spread.
NHS challenge prizes have offered public attention, funding, and recognition for many great ideas nationwide. At the same time, the NHS Innovation Accelerator Programme assisted 18 innovations that have already proven effective by offering mentorship, peer support, and funding knowledge.
Resistance among healthcare staff to change can also impede innovation adoption and dissemination.
We often treat innovations, like digitizing healthcare records, as purely technological changes. Yet, this type of adaptation requires people themselves to change.
Conclusion:
The white label medicine delivery app development is one of the worlds premier healthcare systems.
Innovation can often seem intimidating when trying to break in. Yet, its scale offers an incredible opportunity for scaling Innovation within the healthcare sector.
Recent years have witnessed an exciting emergence within the NHS of an active healthcare startup community and culture of innovation that may revolutionize future patient care.
We must carefully nurture this movement and resolve any pending regulatory, intellectual property, funding, scaling, or procurement issues, ultimately creating an innovative culture capable of offering world-class care services to UK populations.