The accelerating shift toward digital technologies is reshaping healthcare systems worldwide, yet fundamental questions remain about how these innovations can truly transform care delivery, financing, and patient experience. In this talk, based on Katarzyna Kolasa’s book The Digital Transformation of the Healthcare System: Healthcare 5.0, we explore a bold vision for a new healthcare paradigm in which patients become primary owners of their health data and active participants in decision-making. Grounded in lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic, Healthcare 5.0 proposes a virtual ecosystem where remote care, continuous data flows, and connected digital devices redefine the traditional boundaries of healthcare.
The presentation will revisit the economic foundations of contemporary health systems, examine the limitations of paternalistic models, and outline the conceptual and practical steps required to transition toward a patient-centered, data-driven future. Key areas such as disease prevention, ambulatory and hospital care, health technology assessment, financing mechanisms, and unmet-need identification will be discussed with examples illustrating how digital solutions can create measurable value. The talk will also present findings from a case study assessing young adults’ preferences for digital versus analogue healthcare models, offering real-world insights into the feasibility of this transformation.
Participants will gain a deeper understanding of the opportunities and challenges of implementing Healthcare 5.0, including infrastructural, economic, and societal considerations. The session aims to stimulate reflection on how digital health, empowered patients, and data-driven systems can together create a more efficient, equitable, and resilient model of healthcare.