EY Outlines Vision for Future-Ready Health Systems
News fromCourierPR · 3 min read
NEW YORK, Nov. 12, 2026 /CourierPR/ -- EY, a global professional services firm, has released a new report outlining a vision for health systems in 2040. The report, titled "Future-ready Health Systems," sets out a transformative path for health systems to evolve from their current fragmented and episodic models to a more person-centered and outcome-focused approach.
According to the report, three fundamental shifts are necessary to achieve this vision. The first shift is towards "person-led health," moving from episodic, clinician-led treatment to a model that provides continuous, proactive support to enable individuals to manage their health and well-being. The second shift is towards "care within reach," which involves transitioning from hospital-centered care to a diverse network of providers offering support closer to where people live. The third shift is towards "integrated outcomes," moving from fragmented, activity-driven delivery to sustainable, integrated systems focused on improving outcomes and maximizing value.
To support these transformations, the report identifies seven interconnected pillars. These include 21st-century medicine, which expands the capabilities of healthcare through earlier detection, more precise interventions, and innovations focused on population impact. The data and digital engine pillar connects longitudinal data and embeds trusted digital tools and AI into care delivery. The workforce reset pillar involves redesigning the work itself and organizing capabilities around the activities best performed by people, teams, or technology. Patients as partners focuses on strengthening health literacy, trust, and personalized support so people can participate more actively in their health. Bold leadership creates capacity for transformation while continuing to deliver today's services. Funding, incentives, and governance align accountability and investment around pathways, populations, outcomes, and long-term value. Lastly, interconnected infrastructure combines physical, digital, and community-based capacity to bring care closer to people.
The report emphasizes that these pillars cannot be implemented in isolation. The future of health will not be delivered simply by asking the current workforce to do more. Health systems will need to redesign workflows, care pathways, and team models, deciding which activities should be automated, delegated, or augmented, and which should remain centered on human judgment, communication, and complex decision-making.
To illustrate the diverse ways people engage with health information, the report introduces six consumer personas. These personas are: - Trusting traditionalists (28%) are guided by health professionals and are generally lower risk but can be vulnerable when access to care is constrained. - Disengaged drifters (18%) are the highest-risk group because passivity and reliance on default pathways can lead to missed or delayed care. - Hyper health hackers (16%) are confident and highly active but can over-act on multiple sources of information. - Struggling searchers (14%) can be held back by hesitation, low confidence, and poor experiences of the health system. - Rational health optimizers (13%) balance digital and professional advice and are among the lowest-risk groups. - Distracted doers (11%) can make impulsive decisions while relying on less reliable sources and feeling overwhelmed.
The report argues that health systems must move from fragmented, episodic, and organization-centered care toward models organized around people, continuous support, and outcomes.
The EY Global Consumer Health Survey 2026, which involved 7,697 online surveys lasting 10-15 minutes, across seven markets, provides the foundation for the report's findings. The survey covered a wide range of topics, including consumer engagement with health information, health literacy, and the role of technology in healthcare. The report concludes that many building blocks of the future model already exist, and the challenge is to connect and scale them. Health leaders are urged to manage today's operational pressures while protecting capacity for long-term change, making explicit choices about what to stop, where to invest, and how to align organizations behind shared outcomes.
EY, with its presence in more than 150 countries and territories, aims to support health systems in their journey towards a future-ready model of care. The report offers a comprehensive framework for decision-makers to consider as they navigate the complex landscape of healthcare transformation.