The United Nations estimated that global life expectancy increased without interruption from 1950 to 2019.
This has not come without issues, as living longer has led to a rise in people suffering from chronic health problems during their lifetime. At the same time, Covid has focused attention on health to an unprecedented degree. It’s of little surprise that people now want to play an active role in their health and expect to access healthcare quickly and in a frictionless manner with the option of both in-person and virtual care.
An organisation well positioned to respond to this growing need is international healthcare company, Bupa. Through its digital health service, Blua - first pioneered in Spain and now in the process of being rolled out across the globe, Bupa is delivering healthcare tailored to the individual. This is helping Bupa transform to care for patients not just when they are sick, but to prevent them falling ill in the first place.
Blua offers customers virtual consultations and state-of-the-art solutions, such as vital sign monitoring, preventative health coaching and other services that are shaping the healthcare experiences of the future. This approach signals the beginning of a more in-depth way for customers to connect with Bupa and during Covid saw a significant increase in users in Spain, as customers embraced digital health solutions.
“The healthcare industry has seen a surge in digitisation since Covid and we are walking into a future where the healthcare you receive will be personalised to you,” said Dr. Paula Franklin, Global Chief Medical Officer of Bupa.
Blua is delivering on this by gathering data from a range of wearable devices and presenting the information back to the customer with the addition of insight from healthcare professionals. This enables customers to make decisions about their health in real time and helps Bupa understand its customers and their needs in greater depth.
With Blua, Bupa can build new services and make them accessible via an app which helps customers improve their health as part of a digital experience that’s simple and user-friendly.
"Blua will also make healthcare delivery more efficient and more sustainable. Understanding the health status of customers through Blua, means we can make sure the right intervention is delivered at the right time. This targeted care also means that unnecessary treatments can be avoided.” said Dr. Arun Thiyagarajan, Global Healthcare Transformation Director, Bupa.
The creation of Blua is a direct result of Bupa putting its focus on customer experience. This approach is made possible by its rare ownership model. With 43 million customers, Bupa is limited by guarantee and operates without shareholders. That means all profits can be reinvested into providing more innovative services for customers all over the world.
Humans may be living longer, but it’s a focus on healthcare innovation which will mean those extra years are more likely to be spent living in a healthy way. Blua is enabling Bupa customers to take greater control of their health as well as harness wearable technology in a way that means real-time data can be interpreted by clinical experts to provide a more personalised solution.
Ultimately, Blua is helping Bupa to deliver on the old-adage of prevention being better than cure.
