Connected care is here. How can medtech help move the industry forward?
To help advance connected care, medtech’s innovations should better align with the challenges health care providers face
Sheryl Jacobson
Russell Jones
Brian Doty
Christine Chang
Apoorva Singh
More health care providers are recognizing the value of connected care, which refers to medical devices that can seamlessly integrate with health care provider platforms. A recent survey by the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions revealed that 84% of health care executives acknowledge connected care’s potential clinical value, and 74% recognize its operational value. However, there appears to be a disconnect between the actual issues that health care providers encounter and what medtech companies perceive these issues to be. This gap could impede the growth of the global connected care market, which is projected to reach US$190 billion by 2032.1
While both medtech executives and health care providers seem to generally agree on the value of connected care, the survey findings show that many medtech companies don’t fully understand the adoption challenges providers face. Medtech executives identified the lack of interoperability with electronic health records (45%), data privacy and security (32%), and difficulties in integrating with existing workflows (31%) as the top challenges. In contrast, providers reported their top challenges as demonstrating end-user value (32%), integration with existing workflows (29%), and budget constraints (27%).
In December 2024 and January 2025, the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions conducted parallel surveys to assess the current state and trajectory of connected care, engaging 50 C-suite executives and senior professionals from medtech companies and 50 health care executives working in IT, finance, and procurement roles for provider organizations. This research was supplemented by five in-depth interviews with industry executives. This approach allowed us to compare medtech companies’ strategic ambitions with providers’ on-the-ground experiences to identify where their expectations align or diverge. These conversations highlighted the potential of connected care while also identifying critical challenges that should be addressed to unlock its full potential.
Connected care devices are hardware, software, and services that integrate medtech and health care solutions through digital connectivity, data exchange, and insights to prevent, treat, and monitor health conditions. Examples include bed sensors, robotic surgery devices, smart implantables, and imaging machines. The research focused more on hospital medical devices rather than consumer medical devices.
The potential of connected care
Many medical devices are already connected, but as single-point solutions, rather than as part of a seamlessly integrated network that includes various medical devices and electronic health record data. With a wider range of interoperable data sets, connected devices can drive automation, scalability, efficiency, and improved outcomes.
For example, an operating room could be automated similarly to a self-driving car: It could automatically adjust the operating table height and lighting to the surgeon’s preferences, administer medications during surgery based on real-time patient vital signs, and analyze patient data to provide the surgical team with personalized insights before, during, and after the procedure. This could include pre-op surgical guidance mapping and on-site fabrication of bespoke implantable devices with sensors. This level of integration and automation could proactively prevent health issues, enhance patient outcomes, streamline clinical workflows, and improve operating room turnaround time. This is a glimpse into the future of connected care.
However, as one interviewee stated, connected care is still in its early stages. The future vision is limited by several disconnects between medtech companies and health care providers. One major issue is the lack of clarity regarding who is authorized to use the connected care data and for what purposes. While data from connected care devices is valuable on its own, additional data can provide more personalized insights for each patient.
Both providers and medtech companies expect connected care to drive clinical and operational value
It’s worth reiterating that an overwhelming 84% of surveyed health care providers believe that connected care hardware, software, and services provide substantial to considerable clinical value, while 74% see comparable value on the operational front. However, these perceptions differ across roles, reflecting varying priorities and success metrics. Clinicians may be interested in connected care devices for their potential impact on patient outcomes, reduced time spent on administrative tasks, and more time spent on patient care. Financial decision-makers might be more interested in establishing clear evidence of cost savings and reimbursement potential. IT leadership may be concerned with accommodating additional data feeds and customization requests.
For medtech companies, connected care isn’t just a strategic priority—it’s a commercial race. A striking 96% of medtech respondents identified connected care as a key focus area. More than half of the respondents (52%) are already selling connected care products or services, with an additional 34% actively developing new offerings. This momentum is likely to accelerate, with 50% of surveyed medtech leaders predicting that connected care will comprise 61% to 100% of their organization’s product portfolios within the next five years.
The medtech leaders we surveyed are optimistic about the impact of connected care, with 73% citing improved patient outcomes as a key benefit. Additionally, 78% agree or strongly agree that connected devices will be central to enhancing the efficiency and value of care delivery. However, this enthusiasm is tempered by providers’ slower-than-anticipated adoption rates. While medtech companies are rapidly innovating, providers seem to be taking a more measured approach, seeking robust evidence of real-world effectiveness and financial viability. This disconnect highlights the importance of medtech companies aligning their innovations with the practical realities of health care delivery.
Medtech companies don’t fully understand providers’ challenges
The survey findings indicate that while medtech executives and health care providers agree on the value of connected care, medtech companies seem to misunderstand the primary obstacles to adoption. As previously mentioned, medtech executives cited interoperability, data privacy, and workflow integration as the challenges most commonly faced by providers, while providers highlighted end-user value, workflow integration, and budget constraints (figure 1).
When segmented by their roles within provider organizations, surveyed finance and procurement leaders identified reimbursement (20%), end-user value (16%), and budget (16%) as key challenges to connected care. Meanwhile, IT respondents highlighted lack of interoperability (17%), workflow integration (17%), and demonstrating end-user value (16%) as the main challenges for implementing connected care hardware, software, and services in their organization.
Many of the challenges faced in adopting connected care are interconnected and influence one another. However, the issue of lack of interoperability, or the ability to access and share data and insights from different IT systems, is particularly significant and may be the central or most critical factor affecting other challenges. When medical devices can’t seamlessly communicate with each other, integrating useful insights into health care workflows becomes difficult. This tends to lead to lower adoption by providers, resulting in limited real-world evidence of the technologies’ clinical and operational benefits. Let’s take a closer look at the top challenges identified by health care providers and medtech companies surveyed.
Demonstrating end-user value: Some connected care devices have already shown direct value. Clinically, early studies on GE HealthCare’s AI-powered critical care suite suggest it helps doctors detect critical lung issues 17.7% more accurately while also reducing X-ray report turnaround times by 57%.2 Operationally, Bon Secours Mercy Health and Philips are collaborating on a multiyear project to roll out a scalable patient monitoring platform across 49 hospitals. This system integrates patient data to provide real-time insights and standardizes monitoring processes. This is intended to ease the digital workload on staff, allowing them to dedicate more time to patient care.3 More examples and studies on operational efficiencies and improved patient outcomes could further drive adoption and reimbursement for connected care devices. Leveraging real-world evidence can aid in the data collection needed for research studies. Sharing this research with providers is likely to encourage wider adoption.
Achieving interoperability and workflow integration: Both provider IT and medtech survey respondents identified interoperability as a major challenge. While 44% of IT respondents do believe their connected care hardware, software, and services are well integrated into their electronic health records (EHRs), another 40% feel that their connected care devices are only moderately integrated. However, bidirectional integration—the most advanced level of interoperability where information flows both in and out of the EHR—is not commonly implemented and is likely to be necessary to fully take advantage of the potential connected care can offer.
Furthermore, 92% of IT providers find data integration with devices to be moderately to extremely complex. Specifically, 36% of respondents find setting up data feeds challenging, and 24% struggle with maintaining them. Adopting a platform model approach, described by one interviewee as involving “shared assets, communities, ecosystems, and guardrails,” might help achieve interoperability. However, this approach should aim to reduce the number of information sources providers need to access, rather than increasing them.
Many clinicians are already overwhelmed by the volume of patient data. A 2024 survey by athenahealth, conducted by The Harris Poll, found that 63% of physicians experience stress due to information overload, with 30% citing it as a main cause of burnout.4 Even when information is in the EHR, it may not be easy to read or actionable. As one medtech interviewee noted, “It’s all about workflow continuity ... we can connect data to an EHR, but unless it’s within my workflow and easily consumable, I’m not going to look at it.” Achieving this will likely require partnerships across industry stakeholders, including medtech companies, providers, technology companies, and startups.
Another senior health care leader we interviewed noted that connected care is not just about improving technology; it has the potential to fundamentally change how health care is delivered, from “early diagnosis to AI-powered treatment pathways.” This shift will involve not only the integration of workflows but also changes to existing workflows.
Improving data privacy and security: Although recognized as a significant challenge for connected care, data privacy and security appears to be more of an issue for medtech companies than providers. According to the survey, 47% of medtech respondents identified data privacy and security as a key development challenge for their companies, while 32% see it as a challenge for health care providers. Conversely, only 22% of provider survey respondents ranked data privacy and security as a top challenge.
A recent study by Claroty, a cyber-physical systems protection company, found that 63% of known exploited vulnerabilities tracked by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, across industries, exist in health care networks.5 Additionally, 23% of medical devices contain at least one vulnerability, and 14% of connected medical devices still run on outdated operating systems, increasing security risks.6 In a connected care world, both medtech companies and health care providers should be prepared for not if, but when, a cyberattack happens, and also be ready to respond and recover in a way that has the least amount of patient impact.
Organizations should build resilient connected care solutions that are designed from the ground up with security and privacy in mind (for example, security by design, privacy by design). For example, connected care solutions designed and built leveraging secure-by-design and privacy-by-design methodologies and tools should include strong identity and access management, AI-driven cybersecurity predictive capabilities, over-the-air cybersecurity updates, and data privacy and protections.
Another aspect of data privacy and security is the question of who owns connected care data. Here again, there does not appear to be a consensus on this issue. Only 42% of medtech respondents believe that patients own their data, whereas 64% of provider respondents believe that patients own their data. Interestingly, when given the option to select all that apply, 96% of provider respondents believe that hospitals should own the data collected by connected care solutions, while only 12% of provider respondents believe that medtech companies should own the data (figure 2). Although patients are generally considered the stewards of their data, ownership laws vary by country and state.7
Many interviewees agree that greater transparency is needed to help patients understand how their data is being used, and there may be lessons to be learned from other countries. One interviewee suggests shifting the focus from data ownership to who is authorized to use the data under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 and for what purpose. Many medtech interviewees specifically highlighted the difficulty in obtaining patient consent to use their data for research and product improvement, as consent is typically given at the hospital. Clinical insights derived from connected care data could impact how medtech devices are developed, and leveraging connected care data in conjunction with EHR and other patient data can also impact patient care. Providers should consider the potential benefits, such as improved patient outcomes, that may result from appropriately sharing data with other industry stakeholders and partners.
Budget constraints and reimbursement: Hospitals continue to face margin constraints, but the financial outlook for the rest of 2025 appears more optimistic.8 According to the survey, 72% of respondents believe capital purchases will likely remain the preferred option for acquiring connected care devices. However, there also appears to be a growing interest in time-based subscription models. Helping providers understand subscription models and offering a variety of payment options through an “everything as a service” model for connected care hardware, software, and services can help providers determine the best payment model for their organization.
Direct reimbursement for connected care solutions may or may not be attainable within the next three to five years. Insurance companies will likely require evidence that these solutions directly improve patient outcomes compared to existing products on the market. Some interviewees believe that, regardless of reimbursement, connected care has become table stakes. Just as consumers now expect their personal devices to connect seamlessly—across smartphones, wearables, and smart home technologies—there could be a similar expectation for connectivity in medtech devices. As these devices increasingly integrate and communicate with each other, their utility will likely expand, enabling more comprehensive, data-driven care. Once this occurs, adoption may increase because, as one interviewee noted, “if something improves quality, then somebody will care. The model will either be borne by the provider entity as a cost, or they will renegotiate their risk contract because they feel better about the quality they can deliver.”
Medtech moves toward the future of connected care
As medtech companies continue to develop connected care hardware, software, and services, they face strategic decision points. Companies that are currently selling or building connected care devices are primarily focused on clinical metrics data, device metrics data, and provider-facing clinical support apps, according to survey respondents. Respondents also indicated that patient-facing apps are expected to become a greater priority in the next three to five years (figure 3).
When asked about challenges within their own organizations regarding connected care, data privacy and security, as previously mentioned, was considered a top concern. Interestingly, the lack of interoperability with EHRs and other devices was less of a priority issue for medtech respondents (figure 4). To help meet provider needs for end-user value and workflow integration, medtech companies will likely need to focus more on the interoperability of their devices, both within their suite of solutions and with other products in the market. By addressing provider pain points, medtech companies may be able to see direct profits from connected care rather than viewing it as a cost to the business.
Additionally, 62% of medtech respondents expressed uncertainty or lack of confidence in their preparedness to manage and interpret data from connected care devices. As data is likely to become increasingly central to the medtech business, 56% of respondents said they might overcome these obstacles by using AI and generative AI to enhance device functionality and data management, and by strengthening partnerships with external stakeholders. Respondents also chose increased investment in digital infrastructure (52%) as a top strategy to address the challenges in developing connected care devices.
Collaborating on connected care
Connected care is an important strategic and competitive differentiator in the medtech industry. While there seems to be broad acceptance that clinical and operational value will be realized, adoption is likely to hinge on bridging three key gaps: simplifying workflow integration through interoperability and an understanding of end users, providing more compelling research on end-user value, and resolving ambiguities in data authorization.
As the industry moves forward, medtech companies should work with providers, patients, technology companies, and other stakeholders in the following areas to advance connected care.
- Collect real-world evidence to quantify the value of connected care. Partnering with providers that have longitudinal patient and operational data to better understand health outcomes and demonstrate the tangible benefits of connected care solutions.
- Understand provider IT strategy. By understanding how health care providers approach their IT strategy, medtech companies can better integrate connected care hardware, software, and services. This understanding can facilitate interoperability and workflow integration.
- Focus on the end user. Understanding the provider’s journey and ensuring that connected devices make their jobs easier is likely to help advance connected care. This includes helping clinical staff understand the benefits of connected care hardware, software, and services; leverage actionable insights; and reduce time spent on administrative tasks.
- Collaborate on data privacy and cybersecurity. With the increase in connected devices, health care providers face higher risks of security breaches. Organizations should build resilient security architectures that include strong identity and access management and network segmentation to limit access to different parts of the system and help recover operations quickly in the event of an incident. Furthermore, collaboration between health care providers, medtech companies, and other stakeholders is important for understanding ways to authorize appropriate use of connected care data, which can help improve patient care and outcomes.
When connected care hardware, software, and services evolve from point-to-point connections to scaled, integrated solutions, the result may not just be better patient care but a stronger, more agile, and informed health system.
The executive’s participation in this publication is solely for educational purposes based on their knowledge of the subject and the views expressed by them are solely their own. This article should not be deemed or construed to be for the purpose of soliciting business for any of the companies mentioned, nor does Deloitte advocate or endorse the services or products provided by these companies.
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Sheryl Jacobson
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Sheryl Jacobson
Russell Jones
Brian Doty
Christine Chang
Apoorva Singh
The authors would like to thank Leena Gupta for her guidance and support in shaping the project and helping review the paper, and Wendell Miranda for his significant contributions to research design and reviewing the survey tool.
The authors would like to thank Pedro Arboleda, Jordan Cole, Rob Jacoby, Dana Mohr, Jay Bhatt, Glenn Snyder, Doug Billings, Karen Taylor, Emily May, Drew Wilkins, Dan Spillett, Felix Matthews, Ryder Reiss, Jon Smyrl, Bill Siren, Marc Perlman, Arod Balissa, Anwesha Dutta, Urvi Shah, Heather Nelson, Adam Hewson, Boris Kheyn-Kheyfets, Eric Bowlin, Brad Maruca, Margaret Punch, Namrita Negi, Wendy Gerhardt, Natasha Elsner, Laura DeSimio, and Andy Davis for their insights, expertise, and input on the research.
The authors would also like to thank Rebecca Knutsen for her significant contributions to editing and structuring the paper. Additional thanks to Prodyut Ranjan Borah, Christina Giambrone, and the many others who contributed to the project.
This study would not have been possible without the participants who graciously agreed to take part in the survey and the interviews. The authors wish to thank them for being generous with their time and insights.
Cover image by: Sonya Vasilieff; Adobe Stock
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