When I first began working in the healthcare industry in the late 1970s, health technology was nowhere near what it is today. Many processes were done manually, making them time-consuming, inefficient, prone to errors, and, in some cases, dangerous. For example, we used to test thyroid function using radioactive assays with no gloves (the dangers of radiation weren’t yet known). These tests were so time-consuming that we could only do a limited number per day. But as my business grew, so did patient volume, and I had to find ways to keep up.
Fortunately, the late 1970s were an exciting time for developments in healthcare technology. There were a lot of multinational medical equipment suppliers coming up with new tools, so I was able to jump on the bandwagon and ride with them. My patients benefited from the new technologies—and my business grew as a result, as I was able to scale up while maintaining customer satisfaction. The lesson I’ve learned over fifty years in healthcare: the leaders who invest in new technology before they need it are the ones who get ahead when everyone else is trying to catch up.
Early Adoption Is Rarely the Popular Choice
If you’re among the first to implement a new technology, don’t expect people to agree with you. When our healthcare business moved to cloud computing in 2011, we were initially met with skepticism. Now, it’s the norm. Similarly, we were also one of the first healthcare providers in Malaysia to introduce an online system where patients could log into our website to book an appointment. We were also ahead of the game in 2014, when we launched a mobile app that enabled customers to connect with our healthcare services on their phones.
All of these health technology adoptions were eyed dubiously at first. However, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, they proved invaluable, allowing patients to request tests, get results, and access advice at their fingertips 24/7. And today, things like cloud computing, online patient portals, and mobile health apps are completely normal—and even expected as a minimum standard among patients.
COVID-19: A Case Study in How Early Investment Pays Off
When COVID-19 struck, we were able to scale from 10 to 20 PCR tests per day to over 100,000 tests per day by activating what we had already built. Our cloud-based systems, mobile app, and nationwide outlet network became critical infrastructure overnight. We introduced a digital check-in system with individual patient barcodes and a robotic testing process, saving hours of handling time per sample and reducing the risk of cross-infection.
Competitors who hadn’t made those earlier investments couldn’t replicate them fast enough to keep up. The digital transformation that had once seemed unnecessary or frivolous to others became our competitive edge in this moment of crisis. The healthcare businesses that had infrastructure in place—and that acted quickly to scale up—were those that succeeded.
Keep Up with Health Technology or Risk Falling Behind
Early investment in health technology is not always the popular choice and may be met with pushback. I admit, there is some risk attached, as not every innovation works out. However, in my experience, it is far smaller than the risk of waiting—because in healthcare, as in polo, following the line of the ball means staying ahead of the play. The next wave of innovations, from AI to wearables and real-time diagnostics, is already reshaping healthcare. Those who haven’t adopted these tools yet are already falling behind.
