Precision medicine is the future of health. The first thing it has come to change is the way research is done; the second thing is the way medical treatments will be provided in a few years’ time. Researchers are already using genome sequencing data to learn more about why people become ill or stay healthy and what makes them unique and unrepeatable. This is why precision medicine is also known as “personalized medicine,” although personalized medicine is a concept that comes from Hippocrates, only super-specialization in medical areas led to a health model that currently treats diseases instead of people.

In 2015, the US president, Barack Obama, announced an ambitious precision medicine research program with an investment of $1.5 billion dollars, which sought to establish a database for sequencing the genome of one million Americans. The plan, known as “All of Us” and implemented by the National Institute of Health, began creating one of the largest and most diverse health databases of its kind in 2018.

Since then precision medicine began to gain prominence in Latin America too through various players: pharmaceutical companies, researchers, patients, legislators, government, and doctors, who view this new paradigm as an opportunity to give their patients better treatments and provide them with the cures they need.

Although a plan as ambitious as the one being implemented in the United States does not yet exist, governments are beginning to focus on this area, which is seen as the medicine of the future.

Data are central to precision medicine

One example of the risk involved in collecting data as sensitive as that of the human genome is the recent genetic data theft of more than a million people from the company 23andMe. On October 6, the company revealed that the data of a million customers are being sold on the deep web, with their personal information and the genetic links to their ancestors.

However, the promise of precision medicine is far more encouraging than the challenges that arise from data security. This was made clear in the panel held on the topic in Buenos Aires, convened by AmCham (the American Chamber of Commerce) during the Health Forum.

Taking part in the precision medicine panel, Leticia Murray​, CEO of AstraZeneca Cono Sur, remarked that “precision medicine aims to have the right medication, at the right time, for the right patient.” Murray also said that the company is focusing on this approach and that, in the future, one-size-fits-all medications will fade into the background.

Since regulatory aspects of health are crucial to allowing patients access to treatments, Senator Guadalupe Tagliaferri also spoke about the importance of legislation favoring both research and public-private partnerships, as well as patient access to technological advances with respect to health.

Representing the interests of cancer patients, María de San Martín, head of Fundación Donde Quiero Estar, highlighted the importance of getting patients the treatments they need and the fact that greater work is also needed in the area of prevention, to prevent the high health system costs of treatments for diseases in very advanced states.

Leticia Murray said the company is focusing its research efforts on innovation from the perspective of precision medicine. “This is how we think about and innovate the AstraZeneca portfolio:  80 percent of the portfolio of products in the pipeline from AstraZeneca are coming precisely from this approach because we believe that it is how comprehensive patient care will evolve, focusing on medicine that is much more personalized and making health systems much more sustainable,” Murray said. She continued, “If you continue to produce one-size-fits-all drugs then of course some of them can be very effective for certain types of patients, whereas they will be of no use to others. With this approach, we will ensure that the resource goes to the patient who will benefit from this treatment and ideally find it at the right time, and that’s what diagnosis is for.”

Is precision medicine the same as personalized medicine?

Yes, Murray replied, given that that is where it is heading. “It begins in very highly specialized therapeutic areas, like oncology, where we observe target molecules, that is, those related to a certain type of genetic mutation that the patient has. There is also a lot of innovation in studying and watching, particularly with things like cell therapy or medicines that are already individualized where we are now beginning to see medications consistent with this area; future scientific developments are extremely interesting,” she said.

AstraZeneca has signed a collaboration agreement with Roche and Novartis to promote precision medicine in Latin America.

Anabella Fassiano, a PHC Ecosystem partner of Roche, told Global Health Intelligence what the laboratory is currently working on. “The pooling of medical knowledge, digitization, and the science of data analysis is revolutionizing medicine.  We are collecting unique knowledge of human biology with new ways of analyzing data.”

She also mentioned that many of the efforts are aimed at tackling cancer. “In oncology, molecular knowledge enables us to personalize treatment according to the specific genome profile of the patient’s tumor. Cancer care is becoming increasingly complex as more actionable genes are identified and treatment options increase. In 2017, there were more than 700 molecules in advanced development, 90% of which were targeted therapies. So in order to cope with the growing complexity and understand precision medicine’s potential, a strategy of continuous evolution is required for clinical diagnosis and decision-making,” Fassiano says.

What developments is precision medicine having in Latin America?

In the specific case of cancer, genome sequencing could be highly useful to patients in order to benefit from treatments based on therapies that target the molecular profile of their tumor. Sequencing helps to provide better expectations for patients by expanding treatment possibilities, as it detects clinically relevant alterations that might not be detected by other techniques and relates them to potential therapeutic options. On the way toward bringing personalized medicine to patients, a new therapy that acts against multiple types of cancer was recently approved in Argentina. It is a drug that is indicated according to the tumor’s genetic alterations, wherever it may be lodged.

Health systems in Latin America are facing challenges such as population aging, higher prevalence of chronic diseases, infrastructure problems, and resource scarcity, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. FutureProofing Healthcare is an international initiative backed by Roche and designed by leading independent experts to promote conversations around the interventions needed to get health systems ready for the future. In 2021 the results of its Personalised Health Index in Latin America were published, the first resource of its kind to provide a unique overview of the current state of ten of the region’s health systems. The countries involved in the Personalised Health Index in Latin America are Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, and Uruguay.

These ten Latin American countries were assessed and classified based on various aspects related to personalized medicine, such as personalized technologies, health services, health information, and policy context.

As Fassiano says, the region still has a way to go to incorporate precision medicine. “The implementation of data-driven strategies, together with improvements in infrastructure and health policies, are key aspects to maximizing the potential of precision medicine in the region. Personalized medicine is presented as a tool to make the use of existing resources more efficient and, therefore, improve the effectiveness of medical care, despite the as-yet unresolved challenges in other aspects of Latin American life,” she concludes.

What is precision medicine  

Precision medicine is the promise of going back to putting the patient at center stage.

Technologies: precision medicine employs new technologies like DNA sequencing (also known as genome sequencing), bioinformatics, and personalized medicine.

Applications: the treatment of cancer and genetic diseases are some of the fields of medicine in which precision medicine is advancing the most.

Benefits: the main benefit of precision medicine is improved treatment efficacy as it is aimed at a specific patient for their specific situation.

Challenges: some of the challenges of precision medicine, given that it requires highly sensitive data such as people’s genome sequencing, relate to ethical and privacy issues. In the wrong hands, these data could be used to cause harm rather than benefits.

Who can benefit from precision medicine

To make sure cancer patients can benefit from the latest advances in treatment requires a strategy of continuous evolution for clinical diagnostics and decision-making that:

✓ Identifies clinically relevant genome alterations and immunotherapy response biomarkers

✓ Supports clinical decision-making

✓ Helps personalize patient treatment plans

A comprehensive genome profile assessment is important in guaranteeing that patients are able to benefit from the latest treatment innovations.

Next steps

Contact us if you would like to learn more about the most relevant topics in the Latin American medical sector. GHI has customized data and studies that will help you better understand the future of healthcare in the region.

In an exclusive interview with the HospiRank team, biomedical engineer Cristián Rojas—Head of the Medical Equipment Unit at Hospital Barros Luco Trudeau—says that after overcoming the challenges of the pandemic (which left a positive balance in terms of technological innovation, renewal and upgrading of hospital equipment, and improved decision-making processes) the institution, which is funded by the Chilean Ministry of Health, serves a population of close to 1.3 million people, and focuses on increasing excellence in patient care.

After more than three long years of coping with the COVID-19 pandemic, do you think things have finally improved for hospitals, and why do you think that is or isn’t the case?

As regards hospital equipment, the pandemic ended up being a great opportunity for growth in technology: thanks to a successful bed conversion process, the Intensive Care Unit, ICU, went from having 31 beds before the pandemic to 111 beds during the peak of the health emergency, and in the Intermediate Treatment Unit, ITU, we went from 48 places to 73.

In this context, a lot of technological innovation was achieved thanks to collaboration between the hospital management, the South Metropolitan Health Service and the Ministry of Health, purchasing new equipment that enabled us to meet the demand from patients with severe COVID-19 conditions. Most of the equipment we received in 2020 and 2021 was associated with critical hospitalized patients.

Before the pandemic, we had 30 invasive mechanical ventilators; we now have 130. We received invasive and non-invasive mechanical ventilators, electric clinical beds, high- and medium-complexity vital signs monitors, and high-flow nasal cannulas. It was an opportunity to renew and modernize obsolete equipment, replacing it with state-of-the-art equipment in the different specialties.

We also optimized several management processes, which included setting up a COVID-19 committee that met weekly and made decisions based on the epidemiological vigilance being conducted; creating working committees to look at patient care in the context of the pandemic; beginning an unprecedented and successful internal vaccination process, and promoting the use of personal protective equipment among the staff.

The culture of self-care was not so instilled previously, nor was the widespread use of facemasks, gloves, and hand washing among staff who are not in direct contact with patients. We now continue working to the same standards.

Having overcome the challenges of the pandemic, what is the biggest challenge the hospital now has ahead of it?

We are at a point of reactivation and recovery of treatments that need to be postponed during the first waves. Other challenges are taking care of the hospital staff, advancing toward health care focused on individuals, and strengthening institutions.

Are there any interesting new equipment purchases planned for the near future?

Last year we installed a new scanner in the emergency room, to improve the flow of patients and the opportunity for treating those who come to this department with respiratory symptoms. Now, after an investment of more than 1.2 billion pesos, we purchased three endoscopy towers that feature CAD EYE technology, which means that, among other things, when performing colonoscopies, we can accurately detect and locate lesions that have a high probability of causing cancer. So, according to a certificate issued by the supplier, we are the first center in Latin America to have this artificial intelligence technology. We are considering incorporating more towers and integrating the endoscopy examination with the electronic medical records network.  

In addition, we are planning to buy analysis equipment for pathological anatomy, imaging, cardiac ultrasound, and obstetrical ultrasound.  

What are some of the key factors driving hospitals to purchase new medical equipment?

Purchases are made through a public tender where all the companies take part, and the decision is made by evaluating several factors: price, delivery times, and compliance with technical specifications.

Our priority, thinking about individuals, is to have the best equipment, and for that reason we place the most value on the equipment meeting the technical specifications, having factory-qualified and trained engineers to provide the maintenance, and the local supplier being an official brand representative that has access to original parts.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic played an important role in the adoption of telemedicine and telehealth across Latin America, certain barriers needed to be addressed to effectively implement remote solutions focused on patient care. Health systems in Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Colombia – the countries that have made the greatest strides in telemedicine in the region – continue to work to ensure that this modality of care is implemented and widely accepted.

Lessons Learned: Have Barriers Been Overcome?

As Juan Pablo Uribe, Global Director for Health, Nutrition, and Population at the World Bank, noted, “The pandemic has shown that health systems need to be well funded and able to deal with shocks and surges.” In this respect, we concur with his reading that many countries in Latin America and the Caribbean did implement effective and innovative measures, including the expansion of remote health and telemedicine services during the pandemic. They increased the use of data in decision-making processes and established new public–private partnerships that expanded access to healthcare during peaks in the pandemic. These innovations can be harnessed and utilized to push forward a series of broader and more lasting reforms to achieve greater resilience in the health sector. In the field of telemedicine and telehealth, the lessons learned left some promising upsides. 

The Communication of Medical Knowledge

Technology has made it possible to discover and connect people with the technical knowledge to make institutional improvements. While technology is no replacement for the value of tacit knowledge exchanged through direct human contact, it does help people locate the knowledge they need and network with each other. Telemedicine facilitates the seeking of second opinions, remote training for specialists, continuous medical training, case presentations, and many other instances of communicating and exchanging medical knowledge.

Formation of Interdisciplinary Teams and Collaborative Work

The creation of a permanent space for exchange is essential to influence high-level decisions between public or private health sector institutions, professional associations, health professionals, scientific associations and societies, and civil society.

Current Regulations per Country

Lastly, each country currently has different regulations in effect as part of their efforts to implement telemedicine and telehealth. In Argentina, before the pandemic, National Mental Health Act No. 26,657 already recognized telemedicine as a valid tool in mental health care. Argentina’s Ministry of Health has also issued specific resolutions to regulate telemedicine in the country. There is also Act 27.706 of 2020, establishing the Unified Federal Program for Computerization and Digitalization of Medical Records of the Argentine Republic, Act 27.553, and Decree 98/2023 of 2023, establishing new regulations on Digital Medical Prescriptions and Telecare.

In Brazil, telemedicine is regulated by the Federal Council of Medicine (CFM by its initials in Portuguese). In 2018, CFM Resolution No. 2.227 was issued, setting out the ethical and technical standards for practicing telemedicine. During the pandemic, the country regulated the use of chat and video calls as channels for medical consultation. Regarding the use of WhatsApp, during COVID, Act 13.989 on Telemedicine authorized the use of telemedicine for the duration of the crisis caused by the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2).

In Chile, Act No. 20.584 regulates the rights and duties of patients and establishes rules for telemedicine. The Ministry of Health has also issued regulations and technical guides for the implementation of telemedicine there. In Colombia, Act No. 1438 of 2011 and Decree No. 538 of 2015 establish the rules for telemedicine implementation. In addition, the Ministry of Health and Social Protection has issued specific guides and guidelines for practicing telemedicine in the country.

Finally, in Mexico, the General Health Council issued Official Mexican Standard NOM-024-SSA3-2019 in 2020, regulating the use of information and communication technologies to provide health services. The standard includes provisions for telemedicine and teleconsultation.

Next Steps

Contact us to find out more about GHI’s market intelligence research solutions. Our team of experts can provide strategic analyses on some of the most common healthcare-related topics in emerging markets in Latin America.

Dr. Guillermo Grant Benavente Regional Hospital of Concepción (known as “HGGB” for short) is the most complex public health company in the Biobío region and provides the greatest number of services to its beneficiary population. Claudio Baeza Avello, CEO of HGGB, spoke with HospiRank to tell us about the challenges of running one of Chile’s best-equipped hospitals.

What is the main challenge facing the hospital in 2023?

We are making progress on having the country’s entire portfolio of tertiary health care services. We serve not only the Biobío region but also receive referral patients coming from such distant locations as Puerto Montt, over 500 kilometers away. We are working on increasing treatment for high-complexity conditions, and we are transforming the hospital: we currently treat high-complexity heart, urological, and pediatric conditions. We are the referral hospital for the Biobío region in these diseases, so we receive referrals from other regions (Ñuble, Araucanía, and in some cases, Santiago)

Your hospital has been ranked as one of the best equipped in the country. What are some of the main types of medical equipment your hospital needs to buy or replace on a regular basis?

We have a modern set of high-complexity equipment and a budget for this year to replace equipment of around 6 billion Chilean pesos, equivalent to 7.8 million dollars. We have made progress in replacing state-of-the-art technology, particularly in the most complex specialties like cardiovascular surgery. We are making progress in inter-institutional improvement projects, such as the coordination we have with the Las Higueras Hospital to replace the linear accelerator. We also have a very interesting local project to replace the scanner in the imaging unit. We are planning to replace the operating microscope for the neurosurgery service, to expand our development in this specialty.

Does the hospital have plans for expansions, renovations, or new units?

To replace the scanner and MRI unit requires readjustments, which are considered in the procurement projects. We are making progress primarily in the replacements project. In our inpatient building, which dates back to 1943, there are two infrastructure improvement projects in varying stages of tendering and execution: one will provide all beds with three gas lines (air, oxygen, and vacuum); the other is to fit bathroom stalls in each room to improve the standard and quality of care.

As far as selecting a particular brand, supplier, or type of equipment goes, what are your decision-making processes, and what factors do you prioritize when it comes time to choose?

We have no favorite brands or rigid processes, but we do prioritize equipment with certain characteristics detailed by the specialists in the technical specifications we set out in our tenders for suppliers. We assess whether the equipment meets all the characteristics that we set out and whether the post-sales service is satisfactory, in other words, callouts, fast maintenance, and training for operating the equipment.

What challenges are you facing right now?

I believe we have three big challenges. First, to treat complex conditions in southern Chile in the fields of cardiology, pediatrics, and obstetrics, and develop a service portfolio that can meet the demand. A second challenge is to be part of the Biobío region health care network and be involved with them in the process of developing other hospitals in the network.

Another major challenge is to clear the waiting list we have in our region: 40,000 people are waiting for specialist treatment, and nearly 10,000 people are awaiting surgery. We therefore need to improve the surgical processes and increase ward hours to be able to operate on our patients and to provide them with specialist treatment. The third challenge is to upgrade and improve the infrastructure we have in a hospital whose infrastructure, or part of it, is quite old and needs upgrading to generate processes.

What recommendation would you give to suppliers, the pharmaceutical industry, or colleges in terms of what the hospital needs?

Current technology has been advancing concerning health. There are new processes, robotic surgery, and devices will become more and more specific. We are ready to find out what the companies leading these developments want to show us because we know that by working with them we can improve not only patient outcomes but also undertake quality processes for the people treated at our hospital. We are ready to generate innovation and development and to participate with them.

The COVID-19 pandemic spurred a rapid uptake of telemedicine by sidelining or overcoming the various challenges of implementing remote patient-care solutions. Although the pandemic was the major factor driving adoption of telemedicine and telehealth, there are still several barriers that health systems need to address. However, health care administrators can rely on this modality of care as evidence largely shows that it is safe, effective, and widely accepted.

This article gives a broad-strokes update on the development of telemedicine after the COVID pandemic in Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Colombia—the four countries that made the greatest strides in the field of telemedicine and telehealth in Latin America, identifying which barriers still persist to its full integration into the health system.

Progress in Latin American Countries Since COVID-19

Brazil implemented telemedicine programs in several health areas, including primary and specialized care. Telehealth has been used to improve access to medical care in rural and remote areas and indigenous communities. The country also has specific legislation to regulate telemedicine.

Chile has numerous telemedicine and telehealth programs and platforms, particularly in rural and remote areas. It has promoted the implementation of information and communication technologies in medical care, such as teleconsultation and telemonitoring, through government programs like “Salud Conectada” (Connected Health) and “Telesalud” (Telehealth).

Mexico implemented the use of telemedicine and telehealth as part of its strategy to improve medical care and accessibility. It launched such programs as “Médico en tu casa” (Doctor in Your Home), which uses telemedicine to provide medical care to people who have trouble accessing traditional health services.

Colombia had regulations for telemedicine care before the pandemic, but the discipline consolidated during the pandemic with more than 127 million “visits,” what with teleconferences and teleconsultations, according to information published on the Ministry of Health website in Colombia, showing an increase in the use of this telemedicine modality in response to the effects of COVID-19. In addition, Colombia developed policies and regulations to promote telemedicine and telehealth. It implemented programs like “Mi Doctor” (My Doctor), which provides virtual medical consultations through mobile applications.

Existing Barriers

Significant progress has been made in facilitating infrastructure and opportunities for telemedicine and telehealth adoption in Latin America. However, the full potential for telemedicine in the region is still limited by the original barriers, which are detailed below:

A limited connectivity infrastructure

The availability of a stable, fast Internet connection is essential for conducting virtual medical consultations and transmitting medical data. The lack of a reliable, quality connectivity infrastructure in some rural or remote areas can hinder access to telemedicine services. An Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) report entitled “Rural Connectivity in Latin America and the Caribbean – A Bridge to Sustainable Development in Times of Pandemic,” found that in 2020 at least 77 million people were without access to a quality Internet connection in rural areas. While 71% of the urban population of Latin America and the Caribbean do have connectivity options, this contrasts with the less than 37% who have them in rural areas, a gap of 34 percentage points, compromising the enormous social, economic, and productive potential. In total, 32% of the population of Latin America and the Caribbean—some 244 million people—do not use online services. The gap in connectivity is more pronounced when the distinction is made between urban and rural populations, reaching a difference of 40 percentage points in some cases. Of the total number of people without internet access in the region, 46 million live in rural areas. 

The digital divide and unequal access to technology

In addition to the connectivity gap, inequality between vulnerable and well-off populations in Latin America is seen in the digital divide that exists in terms of both technological tools and knowledge. This factor can be a challenge to widespread adoption of telemedicine. In countries where there are high poverty rates in their population, access to technological devices like smartphones, computers, or tablets is limited, which is key to being able to participate in virtual consultations. Moreover, some population groups, such as the elderly or people on low incomes, may have difficulty adapting to new technologies.

Resistance to change and preference for traditional medical care

Some people may have an entrenched preference for traditional medical care, involving a physical visit to a doctor’s office. A lack of awareness about the benefits of telemedicine and telehealth, as well as a lack of confidence in the quality of virtual care, may be barriers to adoption.

Data privacy and security

Concerns about the privacy and security of medical data are an important issue in any healthcare context, telemedicine included. Mistrust in how personal and medical information is protected may be an obstacle for people to share their data through telemedicine platforms.

Reimbursements and payment models

In some Latin American countries, health systems and health insurance may not be suited to properly covering or providing reimbursement for telemedicine services. The absence of a clear payment model and reimbursement structure can deter health care providers from adopting telemedicine as a common practice.

Part two of this article will discuss whether the aforementioned barriers have been overcome and some of the strategies that can be applied for an effective implementation of telemedicine and telehealth in Latin America

In the first part of this article we explored the scope of omnichanneling for the health sector in Latin America. But aside from looking at the advantages it may have for hospital patients, health sector businesses, and medical equipment buyers, it is also useful to look at some of the pros and cons of omnichanneling.

Risks of omnichanneling for medical and health sector providers

While omnichanneling offers numerous benefits for health sector and medical providers, it also has certain risks that need to be taken into account. Potential risks associated with omnichanneling include:

• Data security: omnichanneling involves compiling and exchanging customer data through multiple channels. This can increase the risk of security breaches and cyber-attacks. Health sector and medical providers handle sensitive and confidential information such as medical records and patient personal data. The implementation of robust data security measures across all channels is essential to protect privacy and prevent security breaches.
• Inconsistent experience: Unless properly implemented, omnichanneling may result in an inconsistent customer experience. Each channel must deliver a consistent experience in terms of design, content, and functionality. Customers may experience confusion and frustration if there are discrepancies in the information, pricing, or availability of products or services, which could negatively affect the company’s reputation.
• Difficulties with inventory management: this may be a challenge for health sector and medical providers, especially if inventory management systems are not well integrated across the channels. There may be synchronization issues between the availability of products in the physical inventory and the online store, which can lead to incorrect orders or shipping delays.
• Operational coordination: the successful implementation of omnichanneling requires good operational coordination between different departments and teams. Processes must be properly aligned across channels to ensure a seamless experience for the customer. A lack of coordination can lead to internal communication issues, delays in order processing, and poor customer service.
• Channel overload: omnichanneling may increase the workload in channels of communication and sales, particularly in digital channels such as the website and social media. Without sufficient resources and personnel to handle demand, there may be delays in responding to customer inquiries or processing orders, which would negatively affect customer satisfaction.
• Need for continuous updating and adaptation: the customer’s technology and preferences are constantly evolving, which means medical and health care providers have to stay up to date and continuously adapt to remain relevant in an omnichannel environment. This means investments in technology, personnel training, and a constant upgrading of systems and processes.

Pros of omnichanneling in health care companies

Reaching a wider audience and being present on multiple channels expands the scope of these kinds of companies and facilitates access to medical services and products. Similarly, by offering multiple channels of communication and sales, health sector companies can provide customers with a personalized, seamless experience, increasing satisfaction and loyalty.

Omnichanneling also gives patients and customers the flexibility to interact and make transactions whenever and wherever it suits them the most, through physical stores, websites, mobile applications, or other channels.  Moreover, it can enable better coordination and communication between medical care providers, which can improve patient health care management and facilitate the exchange of relevant information. 

Cons of omnichanneling in health care companies

Handling sensitive patient and customer data through multiple channels increases the risk of security breaches and data vulnerability. Health sector companies therefore need to implement robust security measures to protect privacy and information confidentiality. Another aspect to consider is that implementing and maintaining an omnichannel strategy may require significant changes and upgrades to a company’s systems, processes, and resources. This may involve increased operational complexity, requiring proper management and additional resources.

Another important factor is that maintaining a coherent and consistent experience across all channels can be challenging, especially if systems and processes are poorly integrated. Inconsistencies in product information, pricing, and the availability of products may negatively affect the customer experience.  Lastly, a company’s implementation of omnichannel strategy may entail a significant investment in technology, training, and human resources. The associated costs have to be taken into account when assessing the benefits and ROI.

Aspects for the development of an omnichannel strategy

Health care and life sciences companies could focus on developing the channel as a complement to the current distribution channel to strengthen relationships with their customers. In addition, to mitigate the risks, health sector and medical providers should implement suitable data security measures, ensure a consistent experience across all channels, improve internal coordination, have integrated systems of inventory management, and make sure they have sufficient resources to meet the demand from the channels. Lastly, it is important to perform constant monitoring and welcome comments from customers to identify and fix potential issues as they arise.

Next steps

Contact GHI to learn more about the omnichannel strategies that medical equipment and device companies in Latin America can adopt to expand their scope and gain market share.

Omnichanneling is a business strategy that involves integrating and coordinating multiple channels of communication and sales in a unified strategy to provide a consistent, smooth experience. In the context of health sector companies, omnichanneling can be extremely valuable for improving patient care, operational efficiency, and overall customer satisfaction. In this first article we will talk about omnichanneling’s potential reach for the health sector in Latin America.

At GHI in recent years we have noticed how the adoption of omnichanneling by health sector businesses in Latin America has grown year after year. We are also seeing how the different health systems and characteristics in each country pose various unique challenges to the adoption of omnichanneling.

For example, GHI data show that Brazil, the region’s largest country, has more than 6,700 hospitals. There seem to be few companies in Brazil with direct distribution throughout the country. It is difficult to cover without support from local distributors. In addition, local tax and auditing laws are complex to navigate. Here, omnichanneling is perhaps beginning to grow stronger in those states that have more hospitals to capitalize out of the established critical mass.

Like Brazil, each Latin American country has a different health care infrastructure that might require hospitals and health sector companies to adopt a specific strategy for omnichanneling implementation to be successful.

Omnichanneling aimed at hospital patients

The aim of omnichanneling for patients is to provide a smooth and stable experience throughout the patient-care cycle, using multiple communication and service channels. For example, with regard to medical appointments, patients can be offered several options for scheduling appointments, through phone calls, websites, mobile apps, or live chats. It means they can choose the most convenient channel for them, avoiding the need for long waiting times.

Another option is the implementation of a patient portal, consisting of a secure online portal where patients can access their medical records, schedule appointments, view test results, communicate with their doctor, and make payments. This portal has to be accessible from mobile devices and computers, providing an omnichannel experience and allowing patients convenient access to their information.

In terms of post-treatment care, continuous communication can be maintained with patients after treatment through satisfaction surveys, symptom tracking, and follow-up appointment reminders. This helps sustain a lasting relationship with patients and ensure their comprehensive, ongoing care.

Omnichanneling applied to health sector companies

Health sector companies can adopt omnichanneling in different ways. For example, by using integrated digital platforms,  patients can access medical services, schedule appointments, view test results, receive medication reminders, and communicate with health care professionals through different channels, such as websites, mobile applications, live chats, and text messages.  In addition, the use of telemedicine has gained particular relevance in recent years, and is an important part of the omnichanneling strategy in healthcare. It allows patients to access medical services remotely through doctor’s visits via video, which eliminates the need for travel and reduces waiting times.

There are also multi-channel communication tools that offer fluid, ongoing communication, such as emails, text messages, push notifications on mobile applications, and social networks. These can be used to send appointment reminders, test results, health advice, and other relevant information, to ensure patients get the information they need.

Another option is data integration through customer relationship management (CRM) and electronic health record (EHR) systems, which are able to collect and analyze patient data across multiple points of contact. This helps to customize care, improve efficiency, and detect patterns and trends to enable informed decision making.

Omnichanneling for buyers of medical equipment and hospital supplies

The most useful channels that can be developed for these types of buyers include websites and online stores. By developing a robust website that serves as a central point to display products, they can provide detailed information, prices and buying options. In addition, online stores allow buyers to make orders directly through the website, providing secure payment options and efficient order processing.

Marketing on social networks and online content can be used to promote products and generate interest among buyers in the medical equipment industry. This may include social media posts, blogs, demonstration videos, and customer testimonials. Digital catalogs are another option for buyers to explore and examine products and their characteristics in detail. Physical catalogs can be sent out by email or distributed at trade shows and industry events.

Another strategy is to work with sales representatives, who are supplied with digital tools and access to up-to-date catalog and customer information so that they can provide buyers with a timely, personalized service. In addition to this, online support through live chats or direct messaging on the website allows buyers to make real-time inquiries and receive quick responses to questions about products, pricing, availability, and technical characteristics.

Lastly, implementing tracking and after-sales services is important for sending follow-up notifications, providing updates about order status, and offering ongoing post-purchase assistance, including technical support, warranties, and maintenance options.

In the next part of this article, we will talk about some of the pros and cons of omnichanneling in health sector companies, as well as the potential risks for medical providers.

Next steps

Contact GHI if you would like to learn more about omnichanneling and its application in the medical equipment and device sector in different Latin American countries.

In an exclusive interview with the HospiRank team, Dr. Zulema Tomas Gonzales—CEO of the San Borja National Institute for Children’s Health and former Peruvian health minister—reveals what strategies for pediatric public health her country uses to promote quality care in high-complexity treatments.

After more than three long years of coping with the COVID-19 pandemic, do you think things have finally improved for hospitals?

In Peru, we had our first case on March 8, 2020, and within a week there were already 34 cases. We never locked down, and we immediately made a contingency plan where, having 309 beds, we were able to differentiate: we had 12 intensive care units—as we have several entrance doors—to attend to COVID patients; 60 hospitalization beds for children and teenagers with COVID, but we carried on treating our children with heart disease or brain tumors because those children would have died otherwise.

The pandemic threw the country’s professional and administrative health staff into the limelight; we weren’t equipped to cope with this pandemic.  Previously, there were 250 intensive-care beds and 4,000 hospitalization beds in the entire country. Today, after the pandemic, we have more than 1,800 ICU beds and more than 18,000 hospitalization beds. The pandemic unified us with the country’s public health.

What kinds of health challenges is the hospital facing right now?

Right now, we have a contingency plan in place for monkeypox, because we cannot think that it won’t spread to here, as we said when COVID happened. Learning to work together, the Church, the Ministry, private clinics, social security hospitals, we were all working as one.

Major challenges:  for us to carry on and be prepared for complex pathologies such as kidney and bone-marrow transplants (378 children with transplants), and MRI scanners and angiogram equipment that enable us to do ablation without opening up the heart. This year, we are looking to do heart transplantation with ECMO support.

Does the hospital have plans for expansions, renovations, or new units?

We have a built area of 32,000 m², and we are unable to grow any further under the health architecture and construction protocols. But as we need to be able to care for more cancer patients, we have asked the mayor of the district where the hospital is located to give us a small park of 120 square meters situated next to our building. The project is to build a 5-story building equipped to provide care for the 30 percent of patients with leukemia that increased after the pandemic.

Are there any key factors driving hospitals like yours to purchase new medical equipment?

As a research hospital, we investigate how the equipment other countries already have is giving the results that the companies claim in their presentations. The priority is quality and safety of patient care, according to existing scientific studies. We also pay close attention to the time of use, and we look for fast equipment because we attend to children, although in Peru we do not have a budget for making purchases from one day to the next.

Are there any interesting new equipment purchases you have planned for 2023?

The hospital has been in operation for nine years, so the initial round of investment, which began with its first major equipment purchase in 2012, has not yet concluded. In any case, we have applied to the Ministry of Health for a new CT scanner, as the one we have has become outdated. We are also on the way to acquiring a 3-tesla MRI scanner this year, and a state-of-the-art echocardiographic machine. Happily, the state understands us and we are demonstrating results in terms of health management and quality.

What is the hospital’s most important high-complexity treatment, and how do you maintain excellence?

The hospital is a pioneer in telehealth. We started working in remote care in 2015 with three hospitals and three regions of the country. Today, we are connected to 25 regions, providing remote consultations to their hospitals, where there are no specialists. The growth of telehealth was also driven by the pandemic, because the state, seeing the need to connect the most remote districts, supplied all the regions with more of the equipment they need for this. In seven years, we have treated more than 6,000 patients, providing treatments, high-complexity studies such as echocardiograms and CT scans, and stabilizing patients until they can arrive at the Institute to have surgery.

About the San Borja National Institute for Children’s Health

The the San Borja National Institute for Children’s Health (INSN SB) is a high complexity pediatric surgical and specialized hospital center that receives children and adolescents from other hospitals in Peru. It is staffed by highly qualified health professionals and carries out research and teaching on a national level.

In an exclusive interview with the HospiRank team, Rafael Aragón, CEO of Hospital Universitario Austral, talks about the technological and IT innovations that characterize this hospital of excellence in Latin America, accredited by the Joint Commission International.

After more than two long years of coping with the COVID-19 pandemic, do you think things have finally improved for hospitals, and why do you think that is or isn’t the case?

The pandemic drove us to change how the hospital functions, particularly during the most acute period, in spaces that were not intended for critical patients, when the capacity of those areas was doubled. Tools were also brought in to care for patients who weren’t able to come to the hospital, from teleconsultations to telehealth, which saw their period of greatest use, and demonstrated the need to develop new solutions for remote patient follow-up, with devices such as wearables and solutions for remote early diagnosis. These are now being created, and the hospital aims to promote these new disciplines.

In addition, an extended operational board was consolidated, formed by nearly one hundred of the organization’s leaders—out of a staff of 3,000—and it has remained in place as a work methodology. This structured interaction of all areas was adopted during the pandemic, when we couldn’t allow ourselves not to be in communication with each other from our different areas. This enriched a leadership model in which we are more aware of the importance of all pushing together in the same direction.

Having overcome the challenges of the pandemic, what is the biggest challenge the hospital now has ahead of it?

The incorporation of new medicine, from medical technologies to treatments, comes with extremely high costs. Every patient feels entitled to say “I have a right to treatment,” but these are sometimes experimental treatments with little scientific evidence, and [with] costs that are far too high. Current legislation is inconsistent with making a proper allocation of resources, for example, when a court ruling requires a single patient to be given treatment that costs a million dollars a month, perhaps without considering that this may leave 200,000 people without any treatment at all.

Does the hospital have plans for expansions, renovations, or new units?

Yes. As this is a university hospital, where we train doctors, we need to increase the number of beds—which is currently 220—to 400. We have 10 operating rooms and one obstetric floor, with one operating room for C-sections, and two delivery rooms. The planned extensions are in the emergency area; inpatient beds (critical pediatric inpatient areas, new adult inpatient floor, third-level hospitalization); a new outpatient surgery center; extension of the multipurpose day hospital, and international patient area; new low-complexity outpatient care centers in our area of influence; remote patient care; a simulation center; robotic surgery; and a 3D prosthetics planning center.

Are there any key factors driving hospitals like yours to purchase new medical equipment?

The order of priority is quality of the equipment, then technical support and service support. We look for equipment that is durable, and for there to be a quick response to problems. We can’t have an MRI scanner left idle for three weeks because a spare part is unavailable in Argentina. That’s where the supplier’s commitment to having a stock of spare parts in the country ends up being relevant.

Are there any interesting new equipment purchases you have planned for 2022 and 2023?

We are continually renewing the low-complexity equipment—such as echocardiographic machines, ultrasound machines, monitors, or beds—because this equipment has an obsolescence of three to ten years, due to normal operational wear.

Several IT systems are in the process of implementation, selection, and procurement: electronic medical records; documentation management; governance management; bed management; Markey nutrition management; orderly management, and nursing care planning.

We are upgrading the high-complexity equipment; we are in the process of purchasing a PET scanner, and we just bought a MRI scanner and a gamma camera. The total purchase may have been around one and a half million dollars. The brands we use the most are General Electric and Philips, although we will be evaluating others.

What does Argentina have that is attractive to the global health industry?

We have good training with a good level of equipment. We are not at the cutting edge; we are not the market for the latest MRI scanner that costs US$2 million instead of US$700,000, but I do think it is a market worthy of exploring and of giving much more promotion to innovation within it. Also, it should take advantage of the medical knowledge in everything that has to do with research protocols, as we are a country that could be much more attractive in terms of innovation and development.

About Hospital Universitario Austral

Hospital Universitario Austral is an Argentine health care, teaching and biomedical research institution. It is considered one of the best hospitals in Argentina and is part of the Latin American Alliance of Health Institutions (ALIS) along with other leading hospitals in the region.

In an exclusive interview with the HospiRank team, Dr. Andrés Aguirre—CEO of Hospital Pablo Tobón Uribe—explains how one of Colombia’s most important health institutions remains at the cutting edge. Hospital Pablo Tobón Uribe is a private, non-profit hospital in the City of Medellin, known for its high accreditation standards and its quality certifications.

After more than two long years of coping with the COVID pandemic, do you think things have finally improved for hospitals, and why do you think that is or isn’t the case?

There is a situation of burnout; the staff were fatigued and the hospital was under a lot of stress. The cost of materials, medicines, and supplies has also risen, and there have been logistical problems resulting from the closure of ports in China, in Shanghai. The country has experienced supply shortages in some products.  And ultimately, insurance compensation systems are often failing to compensate the hospital costs that were also increased by the use of personal protective equipment.

What kinds of health challenges is the hospital facing right now?

The health challenges stem from another complex situation. During the pandemic, the obligation to close certain services in hospitals and focus all our attention on the pandemic meant that we are now seeing an overload in health checkups, and increasing demand for emergency services: patients whose chronic illnesses, such as diabetes and kidney failure, are becoming acute. We are also seeing an increase in cerebrovascular and heart disease after the pandemic.

Your hospital has consistently been ranked as one of the best equipped in the country. What are some of the main types of medical equipment your hospital needs to buy or replace on a regular basis?

This is a tertiary referral hospital. We have an Operations Control Area, which uses a system of clinical engineering and biomedical engineering. [Equipment] obsolescence, [hospital] expansion and our system for evaluating health technologies all show us which [new] technologies we need to incorporate. Of late, the hospital has prioritized interventional digital imaging equipment. We also prioritized optical equipment for the digestive endoscopy system. The intensive care equipment is also a priority. Microbiological and molecular diagnosis is important too, because we treat patients with complex infectious diseases.

Is there any new initiative with respect to patient care at the hospital that you could share with us?

The way case management works [for us] is that some insurers hand us over chronic patients and the hospital takes care of them entirely. The hospital specializes in trauma, critical medicine, oncology, hepatology, and gastroenterology. We are one of the hospitals that treats patients with Crohn’s disease.

We have also implemented IT solutions such as electronic medical-records systems. We used RPA (Robotic Process Automation), which allows us to streamline many of the processes of treatment, research, and care-quality evaluation.

Does the hospital have plans for expansions, renovations, or new units?

The hospital currently has 550 beds and we have plans for the entire operation to reach a capacity of 670 beds. But we are cautious because Colombia has a private insurance system, and many insurers have gone into insolvency, leaving hospitals with huge debts.

Do you have any interesting new equipment purchases you could share with us?

We have a technology investment plan that goes into the study phase between September and December, and then spending begins the following year. This year, we made a considerable investment of five million dollars in imaging and angiography equipment, which we have now been using for a month.

Are there any key factors driving hospitals like yours to purchase new medical equipment?

We make investments in proven technologies that are necessary based on the burden of disease recorded in our country. As a foundational hospital serving the community, it is extremely important for us to know why people are getting sick, to be able to decide which technology we need to bring in. We have a health technology evaluation group that studies which digital solutions we need to implement in a cost-effective way, given that technology in a tertiary referral hospital is a strategic concern. For example, the hospital took part in a very large Alzheimer’s disease study in Colombia, which necessitated buying a 3-tesla MRI scanner.

Another key factor is the support provided by suppliers in Colombia. Some companies have their own engineers, and those assurances are what end up having a significant bearing. The financial weigh-up of the equipment associated with the cost of maintaining that technology over time, and the environmental impact of using the technologies, are also key. We try to use technologies that will not harm the environment.

About Hospital Pablo Tobón Uribe

Hospital Pablo Tobón Uribe is one of the most important health institutions in Colombia. It is a tertiary care university hospital focused on learning and continuous improvement, not only from a medical standpoint but also from a human perspective.