Rethinking product development and use
Technology and digitalization are becoming major catalysts for more efficient use of resources and a faster shift towards sustainable models of healthcare, including wider access to care and the enabling of Universal Health Coverage (UHC). We are committed to driving systemic change in product design – optimizing the energy use of our products, reducing the amount of materials used, and adopting circular-ready design wherever possible. For example, software-based solutions like Teledentistry used in combination with Philips Sonicare power toothbrushes enable people to make healthy lifestyle choices, helping reduce the long-term burden on resource-intensive healthcare systems. And service-based offerings, such as our ‘Lumea Select Try & Buy’, which offers additional functionality beyond existing specifications with Philips maintaining lifecycle ownership, can reduce the environmental impact by as much as 40%.
And it’s not just about innovation. Philips is teaming up with customers to deliver telehealth and telemedicine solutions that can reduce healthcare’s overall carbon footprint and decentralize healthcare services. The company is also actively collaborating with partners to make the supply chain more efficient through cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, applying the latest insights in data science and machine learning methods to help determine the sustainability maturity of suppliers.