3 Trends driving healthcare innovation in Latin America

In the health industry, innovation has been of vital importance and has accelerated to face the crisis. This innovative climate represents an opportunity to continue evolving the health ecosystem towards more efficient, accessible, resilient and sustainable systems. 

As the World Economic Forum mentions, for an industry that thrives on constant discovery, the COVID-19 crisis represents one of the greatest challenges at the global level, but it is also a catalyst for transformation. The adoption of technology in health and digitisation through apps, telemedicine, artificial Intelligence, data exchange, blockchain and geolocation, are the clear sign that the health ecosystem is transforming and has great potential for implementation to improve the quality of life of mankind.

That is why Movement Health 2030 seeks to accelerate the evolution of health systems by driving innovation at the local level and connecting all sectors to co-create solutions that are scalable and generate a positive impact in communities. Through this collaborative platform, with partners and experts in 9 Latin American countries, we seek to change paradigms and create the future of health.

In this article, we discuss 3 trends and examples of best practices in Latin America, which will be of great benefit to the population and which are already generating a positive impact, mainly on people from less favored socioeconomic levels, as well as for inhabitants of rural areas.

1. Patient-centered care with Artificial Intelligence

This is one of the main trends impacting health services. According to an article on the next wave of healthcare innovation, the ecosystems of the future will be patient-centered. The services provided will be tailored to the specific needs of each person and care trajectories will be more effective. These user-driven ecosystems will also increase medical care touchpoints, with the goal of changing patient behaviour and improving outcomes.

Artificial Intelligence will be a great ally for this patient-centered model as, in addition to allowing physicians to find more personalised treatments, the use of this technology helps to predict diseases even before they manifest themselves, through available information and machine learning models.

A success story of the patient-centered innovation model with AI is the Sugar Clinics in Mexico. In the country, diabetes is the second leading cause of death. Since their creation, the Sugar Clinics they have served more than 100,000 patients. They have a comprehensive approach to disease management; By bringing together a team of physicians, nurses, nutritionists and psychologists in a single visit, they reduce the number of annual visits from 21 to 4, saving time and money for the patient and the system. 

They have a research platform that uses behavioural analysis and Artificial Intelligence to segment patients. In this way, they predict behaviours and design a treatment strategy according to the personality and educational level of the patients. For example, patients of the same age who have suffered from the disease for the same period of time, would be treated in the same way by traditional medicine; however, patients respond to the recommendations differently. Personalising treatment according to the patient's habits and behaviours increases receptivity and adherence to treatment.

The clinic will also launch a mobile app that will support the continuity of patient care, help the patients make the necessary lifestyle changes and comply with the treatment program.

At Movement Health 2030, we have been working on patient-centered solutions. In Chile, an open innovation challenge was held in which entrepreneurs focused on improving the patient experience by improving clinical processes. The result is 3 pilots that will be implemented at the National Thoracic Institute. Through the systematisation of information, digital tools that generate a better connection between patients, physicians and specialists, and intelligent data management, a significant reduction is expected in care and waiting times and better decision making between the different specialists involved in patient care.

2. Data exchange and blockchain

Data interoperability between health professionals from different disciplines and institutions has great benefits for the patient. Physicians have comprehensive and accurate data available to them that they can access in real time. This accurate information enables ongoing care, making diagnostic and treatment decisions, as well as predicting future needs.

Currently, Internet users provide data through social networks about preferences, habits and the places we visit, which could even be of benefit in predicting medical conditions. For example, a study on predictability through social networks mentions that Twitter has been used to monitor disease outbreaks, predict heart disease mortality rates, and monitor public opinion about health insurance.

Geolocation, for example, has become a very useful tool for obtaining information about behavioral patterns and identifying sources of infection. A success story took place in Puerto Lempira, Honduras, which was recognised by the Pan American Health Organization as an example in the reduction of malaria cases. The municipality achieved a 92 percent reduction in malaria cases thanks to the work of a network of trained volunteers and the use of geolocation to identify cases and establish prevention and control strategies such as rapid case investigation, distribution of mosquito nets and house spraying.

In response to the pandemic, several governments in Latin America have also implemented digital apps with geolocation to obtain data and report. Brazil, for example, developed the Coronavirus-SUS app to register positive cases and alert people in the area of possible infections. This app has registered more than 5.3 million downloads. In addition, the country uses blockchain to store results of Covid-19 tests performed in private clinics and public hospitals, data regarding immunisations, medicines supplied, and number of tests performed.

In Argentina, the Cuidar COVID-19 app informs about symptoms and prevention actions, and processes a permit to move in provinces where there are restrictions on movement. It has been downloaded more than 5.1 million times since March.

CoronApp is the Colombian app to inform inhabitants about the government measures and geolocation to show the nearest health institutions and pharmacies. This app has had more than 3.4 million downloads in the country.

In Mexico, the COVID-19MX app, which has been downloaded more than 654,000 times, allows locating the nearest health units and has a self-diagnosis function. However, the exchange of information increases the need to create standards and regulatory measures on data protection, transparency and digital security of patients.

Blockchain can offer very promising solutions for interoperability. Through this technology, clinical patient data can be shared between users and medical entities in a secure manner.

Blockchain's peer-to-peer system allows a large number of users to have access, data to be unalterable, and information to be secure and transparent. This is a distributed record-keeping technology that creates a shared, immutable, and chronological record of transactions. In the healthcare context, transactions are represented by pieces of patient medical information. There are various verification processes with several levels of accessibility and governance. In the public blockchain model, which is the one used in Bitcoin, there is no participant selection process and anyone can have access. In the private model, a group can govern the blockchain and evaluate candidates for participation. Approved participants can access the blockchain with a digital key. This option allows patients and physicians to access the appropriate information, have a reliable record and improve the quality of health services.

3. Telemedicine and remote hospitals

Remote diagnosis and treatment of patients are no longer a practice of the future and has become part of our reality. The adoption of telemedicine has increased since Covid-19 and the trend will continue to grow, integrating new remote services.

Among the main benefits of telemedicine are access to medical care for patients in peripheral and rural areas, reduction of barriers such as distance and transportation, efficient time management for both the physician and the patient, and greater access to specialised consultations.

Some telemedicine programs are beginning to include services such as remote monitoring and chatbots that use Artificial Intelligence. These offer physicians and patients efficient tools to give medical guidance according to the symptoms sent by the patient. The technology already exists to have robot algorithms specialised in health that can complement telemedicine by offering a greater support to the patient. For example, Toyohashi University in Japan developed the Terapio robot, which can assist nurses in routine hospital tasks such as delivering medications, making hospital rounds, and compiling records. 

In recent months the use of telemedicine in the region has expanded. For example, a success story was a collaboration that took place in Peru in which NGOs, Universities and Development Banks joined forces and managed to help more than 3,000 inhabitants in eight isolated communities in the Peruvian Amazon jungle. This partnership helped to provide broadband services both for the population and in rural health centres.

Another example of best practices, also in Peru, was the partnership that the startup Smart Doctor made with the Ministry of Health to facilitate consultations and monitoring of patients infected with Covid-19. To avoid hospital saturation, 700 physicians from the network treated the population free of charge through the platform, reaching a total of almost 100,000 teleconsultations.

These examples of best practices show that beyond the implementation of technological tools, collaboration between the different stakeholders in the ecosystem is necessary to accelerate the effective implementation of innovation in Latin America and have a real impact on people's quality of life.

At Movement Health 2030 we are already working together to evolve health systems and drive innovation in Latin America. Through challenges with entrepreneurs in different countries and events such as round tables with the main stakeholders in the ecosystem, we co-create solutions in 4 main focus areas including access and continuity of care, data science and digital solutions, inclusive business models and innovation in bioscience.