Future of healthcare work is dynamic and has been shaped by several factors such as technology, patient expectations, and changes in the delivery of health care work.
The innovative technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Robotics in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of patients are expected to rise from 2025 and beyond.
Telemedicine will also continue to increase and provide a greater number of distant consultations and individualized health care services. In particular, the future health care professional shall be able to work (Future of Healthcare Work) with people from other disciplines, and use new technologies.
Future trends up to 2025 and beyond
The post 2025 perspective will see the adoption of more technology like artificial intelligence and telemedicine to improve on healthcare and its provision.
This will require the health care practitioners to modify their behaviour and learn new knowledge and skills in order to meet the new changes in the healthcare sector.
1. Hospitals will experience Declining Operating Margins up to 2024
The elimination of pandemic subsidies, the restart of Medicare sequesters, and the perfect storm of economic releases make 2024 a grim year in terms of performance for the hospitals.
Based on the projections in inpatient and outpatient volume, increase in labour cost, shift in payer mix, inflation and poor investment income, hospitals’ margins will remain negative through 2025 before improving.
2. The decline of volume in Hospital based facilities will shift to 3% per year
Reduced payments for inpatient services are below 20% from previous levels before the pandemic and do not seem returning to baseline levels or normalcy.
This trend will continue as we witness shift in site of care to ambulatory and home settings, virtualization of care service, and stringent payer policies on admission.
3. Value-Based Care to Account For 10% of Provider Revenues by 2025
About 80% of providers claim that the value-based contracting is deeply embedded in their strategies, but the truth is value-based revenue for most health systems is in single digit.
Those contracts that have measurable goals and rewards tied to patient outcomes and performance will start to emerge as a means of achieving financial and clinical goals. We will double the real revenue that is represented by these measures to not be below 10% by 2025.
It should be remembered that real behaviour changes and thus cultural change is not likely to be seen until close to at least 20% of turnover is fully value based.
4. Medicare Liquidation Issues Likely to Intensify
The CBO is constantly changing its estimates with regards to how much longer it thinks that Medicare will be able to fund its liabilities.
A year ago, it was said the projections were for 2026 and now CBO says that insolvency is nearer to 2030. The real date is affected of course by the job’s numbers, as Medicare Trust Fund is funded almost exclusively through employment taxes.
As we observe, the probability of a recession increases day by day, and it appears that it will have corresponding job losses. If this is the case, then the Medicare insolvency date will be projected to be earlier than what is currently expected.
5. Government Policy may shift toward Medical Price Controls
Few things have been found to mitigate the escalation of the health care costs even when the policy changes and political rhetoric are lost. These costs are easier to bear in the growing economy than in the economy that is slowing down on its growth rate.
Out of the over fifty models attempted, only roughly 10 percent have made any contribution to the reduction of healthcare costs. This puts politicians under pressure to make other choices in an effort to get to the goal of having some form of price controls.
Price controls, as much as they may be politically unpopular, do have the ability to produce short-term improvements. The Medicare requisition is one of them and the demand for more control on drug prices is another to watch out for.
6. The implementation of Top of License Practice will lead to an acceleration
A recent survey of professional associations indicates that the US will experience a shortage of over 200,000 RN ‘s by 2025 in addition to experiencing an increasing shortage of physicians. Still, as the saying goes, perception becomes reality no matter whether these projections are accurate or not.
The distribution of healthcare professionals remains an issue of concern in the rural and under-served regions of the country. These pressures will continue to result in professional licensure and regulatory changes at State level.
There is likely to be an increase in legislation that will permit advanced practice nurses, pharmacists, behavioural health therapists, and other healthcare workers (Future of Healthcare Work) to have more practice and prescribing independence.
7. Global Supply Chain Disruptions Are a Long-Term Challenge
This is because we depend on global manufacturers, higher demand, long lead times for shipping, rising freight and air shipping costs, unavailability of raw materials and lack of skilled labour to solve this issue.
On-shoring, though may be politically viable, is not as easily doable as it may seem with issues such as shortage of workers (Future of Healthcare Work) at home and escalating labour costs. The general goal of reducing supply chain dependence on China will also be difficult.
8. Greater Support for Integrating Behavioural Health in Chronic Disease Management
The truth, which is slowly coming out into the open now, is that the mind cannot be separated from the body and, hence, behavioural health is a part of physical health.
As we advance in our knowledge, we can observe that effective behavioural interventions are highly efficient in reducing the overall cost of care.
Results are still anchored by non-health factors including a personal socio-economic and cultural factor hence addressing social determinants is crucial in improving health and well-being.
9. AI and Personalized Healthcare adoption to rise four times by 2025
Advanced technology, especially artificial intelligence and personalised medicine will move from being mere ‘jargons’ to being ‘key working parts’ of effective health systems and plans.
Healthcare (Future of Healthcare Work) will shift from an industry that has become accustomed to large fluctuations in practice patterns and that relied heavily on “experience” and “memory”.
Genomics, proteomics, the microbiome, as well as the predictive analytics will start to transition from the experimental stage to practical applications. These new essential operating systems will start influencing the market by 2025.
10. Data compatibility Will Be Common by 2025
While there have been advances in regulations and technologies in recent years, data interoperability has remained elusive for most citizens.
With the passing of the 21st Century Cures Act in 2016 and the subsequent ONC Cures Act Final Rule in 2020, the framework for true interoperability is now established.
By 2025, with the delays in the implementation out of the way, data should be significantly more accessible to enhance patient care.
11. Pharmaceutical Pricing Pressure Will Lead to New Pricing Models by 2025
As the positive reception for COVID vaccine fades away so fast, it seems pharma will continue to be in the firing line of politicians at least till the next Presidential polls.
Observing public polls regarding frustrations over the high cost of drugs, politicians would probably wish to take an action that is more than token when it comes to regulating the price of both branded and generic drugs.
While pharma will require some regulatory relief and liability shields in some occasions, an outcomes-based pricing model is ideal to match the financial and the clinical goals and should be used as a viable model for investment in new drug development.
Conclusion
The future of healthcare work (Future of Healthcare Work) will be shaped by rapid advancements in technology, shifts in patient care models, and the growing use of telemedicine.
By 2025 and beyond, healthcare professionals will need to adapt to these changes, embracing new tools and approaches to provide effective care.
Staying flexible and open to innovation will be essential as the industry continues to evolve, ensuring the best outcomes for both patients and providers.
