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Accenture’s Life Trends report: What it means for health
5-MINUTE READ
December 20, 2024
BLOG
5-MINUTE READ
December 20, 2024
The line between Life Trends and health consumer trends is blurring like never before. Health and wellness are no longer isolated pursuits—they've become deeply woven into the fabric of our daily lives. From how we move and eat to how we connect and consume, our personal digital technologies are now central to this health and wellness-driven lifestyle revolution.
Accenture's Life Trends 2025 report reveals a powerful insight: people increasingly seek a healthy balanced relationship with technology, which includes embracing tech to elevate their physical and mental well-being. Through crowdsourcing, workshops, and a global survey of more than 24,000 people, Life Trends 2025 uncovers and validates attitudes, preferences and behaviors impacting individuals and communities.
Cost of hesitation – AI offers enormous potential in healthcare but using it to replace or enhance a connection with a healthcare provider requires caution. 51% of survey respondents said it matters to a very large extent that AI-altered images from their doctor or healthcare provider are shared. Emerging risks to brand trust and perception must be carefully managed. When health consumers question authenticity, then trust begins to erode, and disengagement occurs. Consumers who are skeptical of digital interaction and doubt messages can potentially put their health and wellness at risk if they fail to respond or engage with outreach from their doctors.
The parent trap – Parents want their children to have a safe, healthy relationship with technology, especially as social media has such a strong influence on self-identity. In this challenging environment, people increasingly expect the health industry to be a leader in protecting the mental and physical wellness of families. In the global survey, health was a top industry where people expect it to take a stand on societal issues thereby reinforcing that people have tremendous expectations and trust in their healthcare providers and payers.
Impatience economy – Overall, people want quick solutions to their everyday problems, even if it means a risky or unconventional path. Surprisingly, this also applies to health. 68% of respondents said they would be open to exploring riskier routes to improve their physical health and about the same would try an unproven route to improve their mental health. Health organizations may not be aware of the risks people are willing to take and the role they play in discouraging consumers from seeking alternative, and sometimes unreliable, advice and guidance.
Social rewilding – As people look for experiences with depth, authenticity, and a connection to the world around them they prefer in-person interaction with health professionals over digital. In fact, 28% of respondents stated they are seeing a health provider more in person over the past twelve months, switching from their respective digital online equivalents. Among all industries, health was the highest in terms of a desire for personal contact with 61% preferring face-to-face interactions for health, wellness, and mental health services.
Invest with Purpose in Digital Transformation – Consumers expect health to be a cornerstone of their daily digital experience. While they are showing they deeply value face-to-face connections with their health providers and are skeptical of AI-altered images from their doctor, they are increasingly demanding digital access and tools to manage their health. To meet that demand, health providers and payers will benefit from investing in their digital core and prioritizing it to their company’s ambitions, specifically when it comes to engaging with their consumers. All components of digital platforms, including the data and AI backbone, as well as foundational elements like a cloud-first infrastructure, must be thoughtfully designed and implemented with a focus on supporting people in their daily journey toward physical and mental well-being. The ultimate objective is to enhance patient outcomes.
Focus on Patient Centricity – Consumers want answers and solutions that are customized for their individual lives. Understand that health consumers want an empathic, compassionate connection, which at times means a real-world experience rather than an extensive AI-enhanced journey. For certain things that really matter, they want to connect with real people for advice and assistance so it's important to identify channels and influential voices to connect with consumers.
Build Trust – Health organizations must be the source of truth or they risk patients going to unreliable sources for guidance on programs and treatments. People trust clear, unbiased guidance and advice when it comes to understanding treatment options and next steps. They want to feel like they are being heard and informed about diagnosis and treatment options and want their care teams to work together to answer questions and provide guidance. Patients with the highest degree of trust often are the most digitally engaged with a digital-first approach to almost all aspects of their lives. For health organizations, trust is rewarded through loyalty as consumers are 6x more likely to stay with a health provider if they trust them.
The connection between life trends and health and wellness has never been tighter. People desire to have health and wellness as top-of-mind in many of their daily activities and decisions. It is up to health organizations to earn their trust and become that integral component of enriching the lives of those within our communities.