How leasing can facilitate changes in the delivery of health care

The sheer scale of changes being introduced is too great to summarise in any detail, however a paper published by the British Medical Journal in November 2018, illustrated examples by examining how AI and machine learning will change the role of doctors. In this paper Jörg Goldhahn, a medical academic, pointed out that AI systems simulate human intelligence by learning, reasoning, and self-correction. Importantly this technology shows the potential to be more accurate than physicians at making diagnoses in specialties such as radiology, dermatology, intensive care and at performing surgical interventions. In 2017 a robot passed China’s national medical exam and exceeded the minimum required by 96 points! As machines increasingly take charge of the technical tasks involved in medicine, Goldhahn and his colleagues suggest that the role of doctors will change from providing primary medical care to interpreting machine diagnosis and treatment in an empathetic way that can be understood by patients.

Another key area that will improve patient outcomes, whilst significantly reducing costs, is the increasing ability for health professionals (or machines) to monitor patients remotely. Wearable smart devices that record blood glucose levels, blood pressure, heart rates etc can be transmitted to machines using AI, to identify patterns in data to predict, prevent and treat disease or ensure patients are taking prescribed medication.

The changes we are seeing within the delivery of medicine involve the introduction of hardware and software that can manage the growing amount of data being collected and transmitted.

As with any large scale investment, the initial costs involved in introducing new technology will be high; however the long term gains make such investment an absolute necessity. Leasing has always been a favoured, and often only, means that the health industry has been able to acquire all the equipment needed, and there is no reason why this will not be the case for the foreseeable future. However, it is likely that the type of leasing required in the future might change.

Traditionally, medical equipment leased within healthcare has been expensive hardware with a high residual value and long shelf life. New technologies however, are more software based, and so the ‘equipment’ supplied will often have little or no residual value, and will be subject to regular change as technology continues to rapidly evolve.

In the future, the type of leasing required by health professionals is likely to replicate that offered by IT solution providers, rather than medical equipment suppliers. This will mean contracts that can be upgraded easily as new technology becomes available, together with an ability to add hardware and software.

Over recent years a number of leasing companies have become specialists in specific markets driving a high degree of innovation as they seek to align the type of finance offered. It is now almost certainly the case that a further level of innovation will be required to meet the future procurement needs involved in the delivery of healthcare.

BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions have well established specialist healthcare and IT finance divisions and by bringing IT experience and expertise to its healthcare division are particularly well placed to meet the challenges that lie ahead.

Andy Milsom, Head of Partner Training & Development at BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions

Andy is an experienced sales and finance professional with over 25 years’ experience in sales aid leasing. Andy is widely recognised as an expert in business finance and has in recent years focused his attention on developing partner sales teams develop an understanding of how businesses secure project financing. His training programme – Finance Unlocked – is a highly rated customisable course and is offered at no cost to partners.

If you’re interested in helping your sales team overcome finance-related hurdles during the selling cycle, please get in touch with Andy on 07966 114 243 or email here.