Chapter 3: Industry 4.0 Adoption in Telemedicine Industry of India: Present Evidence, Barriers and Future Recommendations

The present chapter identifies and models the structural linkages between the barriers hindering Industry 4.0 adoption in telemedicine industry for a developing country like India. Ten barriers to the Industry 4.0 adoption in telemedicine industry are identified after a review of literature and discussion with health experts. The structural linkages between the barriers are modelled using the Interpretive Structural Modelling (ISM) method. The resulting digraph explains the relation between the barriers conveying that the improper allocation of resources is the most significant barrier followed by high cost of implementation, data inaccuracy and patient privacy. The outcomes of these barriers are possible fraud and abuse of the technology, digital divide among demographics and fear of technology among the healthcare givers. Leveraging analytics and predictive tools can optimize the distribution of funds, technology and training, avoiding wasteful spending to ensure that the telemedicine infrastructure is both efficient and effective.