I had the good fortune to listen-in at the Northwell Health Aging Revolution Summit last month and found myself incredibly inspired by the experts and their focus on this important topic. While “aging well” is a personal hobby or quest, the grand challenges of healthcare delivery and altruism are a strong reminder of this imminent and massive disruption to our economy, our community, and our healthcare partners.
At MERGE, our “Aging Think Tank,” began discussing the demographic trends and its impact on healthcare marketing over a year ago. With that and the Northwell Summit, the following data points are reason enough for all healthcare leadership to pause:
- According to the U.S. Census Bureau, by 2035, it is expected that Americans aged 65 and older will outnumber children under the age of 18
- According to McKinsey & Company, by 2030, nearly half of people eligible for Medicare Advantage will be 75 or older, up from about 40% at present time
- The number of healthcare workers per capita is expected to decline over 30% in the next 10-15 years, according to the Bureau of Health Workforce
- Per KFF, by 2030, the Medicare system will be out of money, forcing significant changes in Medicare plan design including the reduction of benefit-rich Medicare Advantage plans, calling for more narrow networks limiting choice for a large number of beneficiaries
The upshot: The U.S. healthcare system will need to handle nearly double the capacity it does today with fewer resources and care delivery professionals, with a potentially confused patient customer. And, given the incredible mission to care for communities, we have no choice but to dig deep and consider these challenges with a new perspective, an innovative mindset, and a desire to continue to do good for our communities and those we serve.
As Northwell so elegantly began the call to collaboration, we will take it a step further with ideas for our client partners for how marketing can, and must, be a catalyst for innovation and change. Marketing can be the evangelizer of this new perspective that considers the patient, their journey, and their experience first – for the good of all.
A few areas where we’ve defined imperative use cases to begin this vital work:
- A redefinition of access
- An emergence of meaningful, proactive patient outreach and engagement
- A shift in sponsorship strategies that ignite wellness and education
- Beyond “Age-Friendly Care” to “Age-Loving Care” and what that means for our team members
- +1 Empowerment: programs that activate our next greatest resources, the caregivers that are vital extensions of the care delivery model
- A new kind of team member engagement
There has never been a better time for innovation in healthcare, both in patient engagement and care delivery. In facing this impending and seismic disruption, clinical and operations leadership will need a marketing team that truly thinks differently as the patient and marketing experience evolves. Marketing’s unique knowledge of the voice of the customer, journeys, and channel integration put them in a key position to drive this essential and urgent change.
Thank you, Michael Dowling and Northwell Health for bringing this critically important topic to the forefront.
Is your organization prepared for the future? Connect with our team of experts at MERGE to help future-proof your plans!