EDEN: Emerging Business Models for Digital Healthy Longevity

The EDEN project focuses on developing digital health solutions that are ‘scalable by design’. This involves identifying and analysing significant implementation gaps and applying innovative business model strategies to create cost-effective, high-impact prevention solutions by working with healthcare providers, insurers, regulators and technology partners to drive adoption and adherence, particularly for the prevention of type 2 diabetes (T2D).

Objectives

How to innovate healthcare with digital biomarkers to prevent Type-2 Diabetes?

Identify stakeholder needs and values through value proposition patterns in the Healthy Longevity landscape and provide an overview of collaborations that facilitate disease prevention (Study 1). Examine real-world implementation challenges in preventive care from practitioners’ perspectives (Study 2). Analyze how digital health disrupts traditional care and incentivizes incumbents to address unmet needs in T2D prevention (Study 3). Lastly, we evaluate the business model framework’s performance to scale preventive measures and ensure long-term success, focusing on Switzerland, Austria, and Germany (Study 4).

Research questions

RQ1: How can collaborations with diverse stakeholders address the key challenges in advancing healthy longevity?

RQ2: How do digital health technologies redefine traditional roles in the healthcare system to facilitate disease prevention?

RQ3: What are the key components of a scalable and sustainable business model for preventing chronic diseases with digital biomarkers?

Our methods

Adopting a mixed-methods approach, we integrate primary data collection—through surveys, focus group discussions, and interviews—with secondary data from scientific literature and financial databases. Our research examines emerging business models designed to capture newly emerged value pools.

The core analytical techniques employed encompass theoretical deduction and advanced text analysis methodologies, including unsupervised cluster analysis, natural language processing (NLP) models such as topic modeling, and network analysis. Ultimately, our research evaluates the financial performance with respect to the business model’s scalability.

From insight to impact.

Evidence-based approach to digital health adoption, ensuring that innovations are implemented successfully in the healthcare system.

This research provides practitioners with the tools to capitalize on emerging opportunities leveraging digital health solutions. It offers a comprehensive extension to traditional Health Technology Assessment (HTA), bridging the implementation gap in preventive care.

Desirability: Evaluate ecosystem fit and stakeholder alignment to ensure solutions meet the needs and values of multiple stakeholders, facilitating adoption and engagement (Study 1).
Feasibility: Address real-world implementation by identifying operational barriers and stakeholder incentives to ensure successful deployment of digital health solutions (Study 2&3).
Viability: Assess scalable business models and long-term sustainability to support the growth and success of companies in healthcare markets (Study 4).

Publications

Incentive Systems for Diabetes Prevention with Digital Health, Mekniran W, Jovanova M & Kowatsch T (2024), Poster to be presented at Annual Meeting of the Swiss Society of Endocrinology and Diabetology (SSED) on November 14-15, 2024.
The Longevity Landscape: Value Creation for Healthy Aging, Mekniran W, Giger O, Fleisch E, Kowatsch T, Jovanova M (2024), preprint, 10.1101/2024.05.28.24308017. [PDF]
Collaboration and Innovation Patterns in Diabetes Ecosystems, Giger, O.F., Pfitzer, E., Mekniran, W., Gebhardt, H., Fleisch, E., Jovanova, M., Kowatsch, T., (2024), preprint, 10.1101/2024.04.25.24306351. [PDF]
Reimagining Preventive Care and Digital Health: A Paradigm Shift in a Health Insurance’s Role, Mekniran W, Kramer J-N and Kowatsch T (2024), 10.5220/0012400300003657. [PDF]
Scalable Business Models in Digital Healthy Longevity: Lessons from Top-Funded Digital Health Companies in 2022, Mekniran W, Kowatsch T (2023), 10.5220/0011778400003414. [PDF]

Teaching and theses

Lecture on Emerging Business Models in Digital Health – Prof. Dr. Tobias Kowatsch
Prevention in Health Care: Case studies to derive success factors – Winkelmann S.
Business Model Innovation in Digital Healthcare: A systematic literature review – Stalder V.
Business Model Innovation in Preventive Care: A systematic literature review – Diethelm W.
Analysis of Business Model Robustness of Swiss Digital Health Ventures – Jordi S.
Healthcare Ecosystems for Preventive Care: Role of Swiss health insurance – Cathomas C.
Revenue Model Analysis of Digital Healthy Longevity Companies – Klebinger K.

Looking for a thesis?

Financial Modeling of Digital Preventive Care: Investigating the funding mechanisms and return on investment for proactive and preventive care models by building cost-forecasting models based on our identified business models for digital health.

Feel free to apply by sending your CV and research proposal to wmekniran@ethz.ch

In Brief

Our team is developing a business model framework that makes disease prevention measurable, actionable, and accountable.

Runtime

November 2022 – October 2026

Research Team

Wasu Mekniran MSc MBA
Mia Jovanova PhD
Prof. Dr. Elgar Fleisch
Prof. Dr. Tobias Kowatsch

Contributing Members
Keno Klebinger
Céline Cathomas
Severin Jordi
Wilma Diethelm
Victoire Stalder
Sandra Winkelmann

Funding

Contact

Wasu Mekniran M.Sc. MBADoctoral Researcher, Centre for Digital Health Interventions; ETH Zurich, University of St. Gallen