Nearly Half Of Indian Healthcare, Pharma Firms Plan To Integrate Gen AI Within A Year: EY

The Indian healthcare and life sciences sector—which has traditionally been conservative in adopting digital technologies—is witnessing a gradual shift, according to an EY survey report, with 60% of survey participants saying generative artificial intelligence will have a significant impact on the entire value chain.

While 28% of healthcare and life sciences firms in India have already implemented their first Gen AI solution, 48% plan to implement it within one year.

In healthcare, Gen AI has the potential to benefit different facets of the value chain, including clinical services, customer operations and branding. In life sciences, integrating Gen AI can expedite the assimilation of technologies across the value chain.

Suresh Subramanian, partner and national life sciences leader, EY Parthenon India, said, “While the Indian life sciences enterprises initially exercised caution regarding AI adoption, numerous Gen AI applications are now contributing to drug development and highly targeted therapies, which is likely to put India in the global clinical trial map.”

“There is a likely fast followership by pharma and medical devices in Gen AI in customer acquisition, delivering personalised care, patient experience and outcomes, process optimisation across value chain, such as supply and demand planning and operational efficiency, to enhance overall productivity,” Subramanian added.

While some organisations in India are already piloting Gen AI in controlled environments, 80% of the surveyed firms acknowledged that their organisations are not yet fully prepared to adopt this technology. Nevertheless, there is interest in establishing Gen AI infrastructure.

“In an environment marked by significant demand supply disparities and a shortage of clinical and non-clinical talent (e.g., only 64 doctors per 100,000 patients compared to the global average of 150 per 100,000), Gen AI holds the potential to augment the healthcare system’s capabilities and accelerate transformation of diagnostics, treatments and patient care,” said Kaivaan Movdawalla, healthcare leader, EY Parthenon India.

While concerns revolve around potential job displacements, surveyed leaders were positive that Gen AI will not replace the core healthcare workforce but improve their efficiency and release more supply in the healthcare system. While 84% said Gen AI can positively impact workforce productivity, 60% believed it could amplify workforce potential. 

However, healthcare and pharma leaders cautioned that the adoption and implementation of Gen AI would be challenging. Apprehensions among industry leaders include lack of adequate skills and understanding within the existing ecosystem and reservations regarding result accuracy. Concerns pertaining to data privacy, cybersecurity and the potential for biased responses underscore the need to address these challenges before adopting Gen AI.