The Edge - Volume One

THE FUTURE OF HEALTHCARE REAL ESTATE Precisely how healthcare consumerism will affect the real estate footprints of incumbent healthcare providers and new market entrants remains to be seen. For the last 10 to 15 years in the U.S., we have seen ambulatory facilities, such as medical office surgery centers and free-standing emergency departments, flourish and grow in number, particularly in locations away from hospital campuses. We’ve also seen the proliferation of healthcare service offerings in retail settings. There are now more than 15,000 retail/urgent care and 23,000 diagnostic/treatment locations across the U.S., many of which are situated on outparcel or inline retail centers, very close to where consumers buy other products or services. Even in traditional acute-care locations, there’s been significant focus on enhancing patient/consumer experience through building design and access. Meanwhile, telehealth initiatives bring the promise of locating care closest to the patient – quite literally to their fingertips on a mobile or wearable device – with no lease or asset purchase required. While we may not be able to see all the impacts this new wave of healthcare consumerism will bring to the real estate industry, we can be confident that the industry and its approach to supporting healthcare providers will adapt alongside these innovations in care delivery.

stay engaged with one another. While adoption in the U.S. has been slow, many European firms have developed useful approaches. For instance, in November 2017, the UK’s National Health Service awarded the first trial contract for a specific telehealth system based on hand-held technology in the UK Public Health system. The system, which is now operational, is known as "GP at hand." This is a 24/7 wearable technology that has massive operational and cost implications for patients, doctors, administrators and all those associated with the provision of healthcare. Experts expect that these types of tools will challenge the infrastructure surrounding healthcare delivery. While this initial trial centers on London, it is expected to migrate to major cities around the UK. The technology, powered by Babylon Health, relies on proprietary artificial intelligence developed in the private sector over the last few years. Babylon’s mission is to put an accessible and affordable health service in the hands of every person on Earth - bringing the burgeoning power of AI and best-in-class medical expertise together. For most teenagers, millennials or those living in remote areas, hand-held technology is often the best and/or preferred means of communication. The ability to access healthcare assessments, advice and even face-to- face appointments, similarly to how we access a range of social networks, are likely to become the norm and not the exception. and facilitators, handheld medical technology solutions have massive attraction, not least on economic and operational grounds. Indeed, technology platforms and companies with a global reach may well lead the charge toward a whole new approach to the delivery of medicine – from medications to expert advice and monitoring. Looking beyond consumers to healthcare providers, insurers

Responding to consumer preferences, legacy healthcare providers are undertaking several tactical initiatives. First, many of them are moving care closer to patients, offering urgent care, clinics, ambulatory surgery centers, and in some U.S. states, free-standing emergency departments or micro- hospitals in areas where patients live, rather than having every service located on or near the hospital campus. Centralized patient scheduling provided by health systems or large physician groups has also emerged as a key strategy for many. This service allows patients to call one number to find a referral to a specific kind of physician and book an appointment. The widespread adoption of electronic healthcare records helps facilitate such scheduling and gives care providers another tool to ensure patient care is coordinated throughout complex healthcare organizations. Digital health initiatives are also emerging as a new tool for both patients and healthcare providers to

TIM COUCH Healthcare Practice Lead Global Occupier Services tim.couch@cushwake.com

LORIE DAMON Managing Director Healthcare Advisory Practice lorie.damon@cushwake.com

DAVID KERR Partner, Head of Central London Healthcare Markets david.kerr@cushwake.com

21

Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker