Expopharm pre-event

Large Language Models are becoming a new point of contact for patients, changing how they search for health information, prepare for consultations and make decisions. At the same time, expectations around convenience, accessibility and digital healthcare experiences continue to rise.

In the context of Expopharm 2026, OMMAX brought together leaders from pharmacy, pharma, healthcare, medical care and cybersecurity at its Munich headquarters to discuss what this shift means for the future of healthcare.

About the event

Under the theme “From Dr. Google to Dr. AI”, the evening explored a fundamental question: What happens when patients increasingly turn to AI before speaking to a pharmacist or physician?

The discussion brought together perspectives from across the healthcare ecosystem, from direct patient care and pharmacy to the pharmaceutical industry and cybersecurity.

The conversation showed that the impact of AI goes far beyond a new search interface. It is changing how informed patients are when they enter a pharmacy or practice, how healthcare organizations need to think about digital visibility and how trusted human expertise needs to evolve alongside increasingly capable AI systems.

Five key takeaways

1. Patient behavior has already shifted
   Patients are increasingly using AI to research symptoms, understand health topics and prepare for conversations with healthcare professionals. Instead of arriving with an open question, they may already have an AI-generated assessment, recommendation or suggested next step.
2. Healthcare professionals are moving from information to interpretation
   Greater access to information does not eliminate the need for pharmacists and physicians. Their role becomes even more important in contextualizing information, assessing its relevance for the individual and distinguishing reliable guidance from potentially misleading recommendations.
3. AI visibility is becoming a commercial priority for pharma
   As AI platforms increasingly influence the first stages of the patient journey, healthcare and pharmaceutical organizations need to consider whether their trusted information can be found, understood and correctly contextualized by AI systems.
4. The future of healthcare requires connected patient journeys
   The discussion moved beyond the question of which healthcare professional should perform which task. The bigger opportunity lies in creating connected pathways across pharmacies, medical practices and other healthcare providers, supported by better data availability and interoperability.
5. Cybersecurity must be built in from the start
   More connected healthcare and increasing AI adoption also create new attack surfaces. Protecting sensitive patient and health data cannot be an afterthought. Security by design needs to become a fundamental principle of digital healthcare transformation.