Accenture Survey: Consumers Uncertain About Virtual Care Engagement
On Aug. 6, Accenture, a global professional services company offering strategy and consulting, interactive, technology and operations services, headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, released the results of the “2021 Accenture Health and Life Sciences Experience Survey.”
According to a release on Accenture’s website, “The healthcare system showed resilience over this past year and remained accessible to many. In fact, the 2021 Accenture Health and Life Sciences Experience Survey of nearly 1,800 people in the United States revealed that 26 percent said their access to healthcare has been even better since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Digital adoption spiked overnight as providers had to quickly pivot to virtual care. However, we also learned that more than one quarter of survey respondents did not use any digital technologies to manage their health in the past year.”
Further, “As we learned in previous years, one reason why many people didn’t adopt digital is a lack of trust in technology companies to safeguard their healthcare information. This year, nearly half (43 percent) said they would not be willing to have a virtual care appointment with technology companies in the future. People would be more likely to adopt digital technologies if a provider recommended them (33 percent), if they felt more confident in data security and privacy (30 percent) and if these technologies enabled them to receive better information about their health (30 percent).”
Additional statistics from the report include:
- Thirty-two percent had a virtual consultation with medical provider
- Thirty-one percent used electronic health records
- Twenty percent used wearables
- Eighteen percent used mobile phone/tablet applications
- Twelve percent used social media or online support communities
- Ten percent agreed to remote patient monitoring
That said, “Amid the rise of virtual care, a striking majority of people are considering whether they have the right to approve the collection and usage of their personal health information beyond their treatment (73 percent). Greater use of virtual care has made them more aware of their data privacy and security needs (64 percent) and they’re thinking about whether their health information is valuable to advancing research (54 percent). People have a greater willingness to share personal health data with a medical provider or pharmaceutical companies if it delivers a personal benefit, such as improving their health and increasing their medications’ effectiveness (44 percent), or to gather evidence about their medication and treatment efficacy (37 percent). Only 17 percent would let pharma companies manage a chronic illness in collaboration with a medical provider.”
The report also covers negative experiences in healthcare, patients’ desire for emotional support, patients’ access to healthcare systems showing resilience, and trust in pharmaceutical companies.
