Global healthcare consulting revenues are up!
According to a new report published by Source Global Research, global healthcare consulting revenues grew in 2018 to surpass US$10 billion, and this has much to do with the increasing prevalence of digital solutions
In the report, titled The Healthcare Consulting Market in 2019, figures showed that 2018’s market growth of 9.1 per cent was larger than that of 2017, which sat at eight per cent. The US – which generated over 70 per cent of global healthcare consulting revenues in 2018 – grew at a faster rate than the previous year. And China, as the second largest market for healthcare consulting, enjoyed a growth rate of 27.3 per cent in 2018, making this particular sector the fastest-growing segment of China’s consulting market.
Elsewhere, a group that has cause for celebration are technology consultants, whose promotion of digitisation to even clients who have been traditionally slow on the technological uptake has earned them an 11.6-per-cent market growth and the highest revenues of $3.3 billion. The operational improvement sector within this segment experienced the second highest growth (from 9.9 per cent, reaching $2.5 billion), with clients now facing increased external pressure to provide more care with less money.
“Greater patient-centricity is a major theme driving consulting work around the world. A push to improve patient experience is generating strong demand for digital solutions similar to those delivered in retail,” said B. J. Richards, Senior Editor at Source Global Research. “Healthcare clients are also looking to use technology to improve the customer/patient-facing side of operations, with automated portals for managing appointments, referrals, test results, and advice presenting opportunities to improve service while also cutting costs. Consultants report demand that ranges from vendor selection assistance to end-to-end customer service solution delivery.”
And Richard Williams, Managing Director, Global Healthcare Practice Leader at Protiviti, agreed. He noted that the healthcare industry as a whole now faced ‘a digitally transformed future’, and so would need to ensure that it had the necessary digital tools to facilitate innovative new ways of serving patients, while also streamlining costs, processes and delivering improved margins over time.
The report also predicted that healthcare consultants will likely enjoy a very strong market for the next few years to come and projects that 2019’s consulting revenue growth will surpass 2018’s, growing by 10 per cent. As for 2020, it could be looking at 12 per cent growth, the report suggests.
“The first three quarters of 2019 have been nothing short of remarkable,” commented Ed Giniat, Partner, National Sector Leader for Healthcare & Life Sciences at KPMG – a global network of independent member firms offering audit, tax and advisory services. “I think we’re in a cycle of modernisation; the client base is really demanding solutions that integrate strategy and operations to drive tactical results.”
You can read the full report here.