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Put your money where the future is

Now is a really good time to be a digital solution company. Investments in digital health funding hit $14.7 billion in the first half of 2021 alone, surpassing all of 2020’s funding. As funding grows, so does the quality and efficacy of digital solutions and therapeutics – over 25 digital therapeutics have been granted market authorization by the FDA, with another 89 still in development. 

Healthcare has gone digital, and health systems that want to compete in a shifting landscape must make digital a core part of their DNA. We advocate for a “build, buy, or partner” model with our Members, and across the industry, more hospitals becoming venture capitalists for new digital solutions. While some investments may not work out, many others create long-term, mutually beneficial partnerships for the health system and the digital solution. While the path to become digital-first may vary from organization to organization, what’s clear is that health systems are putting their time, effort, and money into shifting from “doing digital” to “being digital.” How are you taking action towards your health system’s digital future?

Industry Insights

• Partnering for success: How Geisinger selected digital solutions to enable transformation [AVIA]: An organization-wide digital transformation strategy is a great start, but executing on the strategy by selecting digital solutions needs to be efficient to enable long-term success at your health system. Geisinger used AVIA’s expertise to expedite the rollout of parts of its digital transformation strategy.

• The power of AVIA’s Venture Network: Investing for success with Bon Secours Mercy Health, Ballad Health, and EvidenceCare [AVIA]: There’s no denying it – digital health funding is skyrocketing, and many health systems are looking for opportunities to invest in digital solutions. AVIA’s Venture Network facilitates these investments. Bon Secours Mercy Health and Ballad Health used the Network to form a long-term partnership with EvidenceCare – here’s how. 

• AVIA Membership grows amid unprecedented demand for digital health expertise [AVIA]: During the first six months of 2021, AVIA added six new Member health systems with a record 100% renewal rate. This growing demand to join the AVIA Network reflects the heightened sense of urgency for health systems to optimize their digital strategies. 

• Digital Health Trends 2021 [IQVIA Institute]: There are currently over 350,000 digital health apps available, with 90,000 new apps added in 2020 alone. From telemedicine to mental health to exercise to blood pressure, here’s the state of digital health apps (and other technologies) in 2021. 

AVIA events

Recording | Health Equity in the Spotlight: A Conversation with HonorHealth and ChristianaCare | View the recording and access the slides

Recording | 4 Big Moves to Emerge Stronger with Digital | View the recording and access the slides

CTA: See all events

Visual of the week

Digital makes winners and losers. Those who invest in digital – whether they build, buy, or partner – will emerge stronger, driving revenue and growth, while digital laggards will get left behind. It’s time to lean into digital investments in order to survive and thrive in an increasingly digital industry. 

CTA Button: Build a digital transformation strategy

What we’re into this week

Thanks for reading to the bottom of the newsletter! We’re highlighting some non-healthcare-related items that the AVIA team is into this week. Share your recs with us at contact@avia.health.

• Read: “The perfectionism trap” in The Economist for a deep dive into why we are so dissatisfied with being ordinary.

• Listen: to the episode of The Man Enough Podcast featuring Alok Vaid-Menon, acclaimed gender non-conforming writer, performer, and speaker. 
• Watch: Reservation Dogs on FX, a comedy from the brilliant minds of Taika Waititi and Sterlin Harjo that follows the exploits of four Indigenous teenagers in rural Oklahoma.