Connecting digital pharma and e-healthcare value networks through product-service design: a conceptual model

With the move towards more 'outcome' and 'value'-based treatment regimens – increasingly tailored for the individual patient – there is growing pressure on healthcare systems and the pharmaceutical sector to collaborate and co-develop innovative models of care and medication. This paper focuses on the impact disruptive digital technologies may have on the UK Pharma/National Health Service (NHS) ecosystem. Underpinned by the literature on digital/IoT-based business models and product-service systems (PSS), a conceptual model for designing more 'connected' value networks is developed and validated by an expert panel. Applying the model, we assess emerging PSS concepts and scenarios involving more distributed 'make-to-order' service models - demonstrating the potential for technologies, such as 3D printing, to enable localised and personalised medication manufacture. The model reduces complexity and serves to provide practical guidance on future operating principles and protocols to be used in the design and implementation of improved e-healthcare solutions.