The use of low-code technology presents promising opportunities in every conceivable sector. Mark van Meggelen from consulting firm IG&H explains what low-code adoption can mean for his MedTech company in particular.
MedTech companies have always been driven by innovation. Although the industry has hardware innovation at the core of its existence, the past decade has seen a shift toward offering more software-based solutions and services.
For example, MedTech companies are increasingly offering optimization services to improve their customers' workflows and management processes, such as managing spare parts inventories and optimizing the use and deployment of medical devices in patient care.
Low-code software is seen as a key driver for the transition of business models from products to services.
Low-code technology makes it easier to build applications by allowing you to develop them with minimal coding. The use of visual elements makes user interface development more intuitive. This also has a positive impact on customer experience. The ease of use of this technology leads to flexibility and reusability of work processes. This provides speed and agility to companies, including medical technology companies, reducing time to deployment.
Three reasons why MedTech companies can derive value from using low-code technology:
1. Improvement of internal processes
Traditional software systems aren't always easy for employees to use. For example, why should hospital staff spend valuable time clicking through a planning system to find available outpatient rooms? By moving to technology, you can improve internal operational efficiency.
For example, you can optimize the front-end experience for your employees while preserving complex back-office ERP processes. This can lead to some quick benefits for medical technology companies, such as reducing the need for training as certain processes become standardized. It also saves time by making the system more user-friendly and creating room for incremental innovation and improvement.
2. Reduce the burden on medical staff and benefit patients
To further exacerbate the problem of staff shortages in healthcare, staff must treat more patients. The power of low-code software platforms frees up staff to focus more on providing care to patients by eliminating unnecessary time managing cumbersome legacy systems that are often not user-friendly. Masu.
Low-code solutions also benefit patients. When using medical devices such as blood glucose meters for diabetic patients, healthcare providers can use low-code to securely capture and visualize the data generated by these devices remotely. Healthcare providers can then engage in data-driven conversations with patients and provide appropriate digital health services. This results in better and more timely interactions between healthcare providers and patients, resulting in personalized triage.
Ultimately, patients will have more control over the support they want and better self-management to cope with their chronic illness.
3. Optimize the customer service experience
The Dutch medical devices market is expected to experience revenue growth of over 4% between 2023 and 2027. In this regard, a good customer experience is becoming increasingly important, including for buyers of MedTech equipment.
Low-code offers an opportunity to rethink customer service. A company may primarily focus on selling technology to customers and then email updates about the product. Or, low-code mobile applications can improve the hospital's client experience. Consider offering an app that provides access to technical support, troubleshooting, and education in a retail-like experience.
Benefits include increased sales potential, smarter use of data, increased productivity, and a smoother, more comprehensive customer experience. This is advantageous for both medical technology companies and hospitals.
Low-code technology easily integrates with other systems and databases. Additionally, companies don't have to wait for improvements to legacy systems. Rather, you can easily improve the user experience and functionality. This allows MedTech companies to work in a truly agile manner and continuously increase their offerings over time.
continuous innovation
While cost savings and increased flexibility are the more obvious benefits, the greater innovation potential with low-code on top of or next to ERP represents the real opportunity. Flexible low-code strategies make it easy to iterate. This allows you to respond quickly to changing business requirements and adapt to employee needs and customer expectations. By doing so, MedTech can harness the potential for innovation and create new solutions without relying heavily on traditional IT.
Finally, low-code platforms allow organizations to easily adapt and incorporate new and related technologies such as Generative AI and Robotics Process Automation. This allows you to streamline operations, reduce labor costs, and increase efficiency.
With the ability to enable innovation and speed, low-code technology helps improve healthcare delivery and efficiency. Low-code is the gateway to digital transformation and helps make healthcare a better place.
