Remote patient monitoring is one of the fastest growing areas of healthcare according to a report released by ABI Research.
The report indicates that the usage of Wi-Fi by the healthcare industry rose by more than 60% over the last year. The research company said that in the last 12 months Wi-Fi adoption grow in both wireless local area network and Wi-Fi RTLS (Real-Time Locations Systems) deployments. It added that high double-digit growth is expected to continue for at least the medium term.
ABI noted that healthcare has started using other wireless technologies such as cellular M2M and wearable wireless sensors. Moreover, wireless communications continue to be adopted in healthcare applications ranging from Wi-Fi networks to wearable sensors.
“Wi-Fi adoption has helped overcome initial concerns about complexity and reliability of wireless within healthcare,” wrote ABI Research principal analyst Jonathan Collins. “The growing number of wireless technologies and wireless applications being developed, piloted and deployed within healthcare further underline the level of interest in using wireless to improve the flexibility and efficiency of healthcare services around the world."
In a separate report ABI predicted that revenue from sales of Wi-Fi-enabled healthcare products worldwide (not including Wi-Fi-equipped medical equipment) will total $4.9 billion in 2014. This represents an increase of nearly 70% over today’s figure.
The importance of healthcare wireless and mobile technology was illustrated in a hearing of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Health. Rep. Michael F. Michaud, who chairs the committee, said that these technologies represent "the new frontier in health innovations, as well as a great way of increasing access to care for millions of veterans."
"Mobile health makes it possible for healthcare professionals to receive real-time health data such as vital signs, glucose levels and medication compliance because data from the patient's mobile sensors are relayed over wireless connections," Michaud said.
One such application was revealed in a report saying that STMicroelectronics plans to develop a wireless MEMS sensor that acts as a transducer, antenna and mechanical support for additional read-out electronics in a breakthrough platform developed by Swiss company Sensimed AG. This solution will enable better management of glaucoma patients via earlier diagnosis and treatment that is optimally tailored to the individual patient.
The European eHealth market is expected to grow by a compounded annual growth rate of 2.9 percent, according to a report published by the European Commission.
The final report, “Business Models for eHealth study”, which is based on a study funded by the ICT for Health unit of the European Commission’s DG Information Society and Media, expects the European eHealth market to reach some 15.6 million euro by 2012 compared to 14.2 million euro in 2008.
The study, which was coordinated by RAND Europe in partnership with Capgemini Consulting, confirms that France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom are the principal European eHealth markets. The authors noted, however, that over the next three years all national eHealth markets will experience some form of growth in this area.
It should be noted that eHealth was defined by the European Commission as a Lead Market. The pivotal role of eHealth for Europe was confirmed at the 2009 EU Ministerial Conference in Prague and by the December 2009 conclusions of the European Council calling for the implementation of safe and efficient healthcare through eHealth. There has been a call for overarching governance structure so as to remove barriers to the development of eHealth in Europe.
The study introduces a set of policy recommendations for the European Commission and other stakeholders to improve the overall quality and efficiency of health services through eHealth. It called on national healthcare authorities, health professional associations, healthcare delivery organizations, the industry and the research community to share perspectives on applicable best practice and experience.
The telemedicine technology market of the BRIC countries will increase to over $418 million by the year 2014, according to a new report published by research firm MarketsandMarkets.
The market research report titled "BRIC Telemedicine Market" forecasts that the market of the largest emerging economics will grow by a compound annual growth rate of 16.6% to $307.4 million in the next five years. The telemedicine service market of BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) will increase by 13.8% to $111 million in 2014.
The BRIC term was coined by US investment bank Goldman Sachs in 2001, which argued that based on their rapid development, BRIC bloc of countries would eclipse the world’s richest economies by 2050.
The authors of the report note that the BRIC telemedicine market is witnessing a significant growth due to increase in the number of patients suffering from chronic diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), chronic heart failure (CHF), asthma, hypertension, and diabetes.
They added that health services in BRIC countries are expanding their overall IT spending boosting demand for telemedicine services. In addition, growing demand for better healthcare services and growth in telecommunication network are also impacting the BRIC telemedicine market.
Wireless medicine has the potential to revolutionize medical practice and to help curb healthcare costs, according to Dr. Joseph Smith, Chief Medical and Science Officer for the West Wireless Health Institute in La Jolla, California and former Vice President of Emerging Technologies for Johnson & Johnson in the Corporate Office of Science and Medicine.
In an interview with Medscape Business of Medicine, Dr. Smith said that the model of remote monitoring to control titratable therapy can be extended for nearly any chronic disease that has a measure of disease activity.
"It's easy to contemplate remote monitoring of heart failure and diabetes. It's not a big stretch to contemplate remote monitoring of autoimmune diseases or other forms of chronic diseases characterized by waxing and waning periods and exacerbations," he said. "I think we will readily monitor and titrate therapy at a distance for such patients to avoid the expensive decompositions of these chronic diseases."
The estimates are in line with a report published by Juniper Research earlier this year indicating that healthcare smartphone applications are expected to significantly contribute to mHealth revenues.
Dr. Smith added that remote monitoring equipment would also affect physician assistants, nurses, and other office staff who are typically involved in patient-monitoring interactions allowing them to do a better job of assuring that patients most in need of care get that care in places and times that are most appropriate.
The growing interest in telemedicine is also attracting large mobile phone manufacturers who show growing interest in this field.
So for example, RIM, the manufacturer of Blackberry mobile devices, and Vodafone announced recently a new services that allows doctors check the ECG of patients through mobile devices allowing them to get results in a much more efficient and less time consuming manner.
Aerotel Medical Systems will present its innovative personal homecare solutions at the Hospitalar 2010 expo and conference, which will take place in São Paulo, Brazil on May 25-28, 2010.
During the show, Aerotel will showcase its e-CliniQ Homecare System for remote monitoring of various health parameters and other eHealth and mHealth solutions. Ofer Atzmon, VP Business Development and Marketing at Aerotel, will present the Heartline ECG Monitoring and GeoSkeepr Personal Safety Device at the Israeli booth at the Green Pavilion N87, which is located at the Expo Center Norte.
1,200 exhibitors will present their services and products to some 86,000 professional visitors. Hospitalar is organized in cooperation with MEDICA - World Fair of Medicine and is affiliated to the International Hospital Federation (IHF), the worldwide association of hospitals.
Aerotel's products Heartview P12/8, Heartview12L and HRS receiving software are already used and certified in Brazil market and the company has several local clients including ITMS, which provides a service to SAMU, the national ambulance service of São Paulo state.
During the show Aerotel will hold a presentation describing the usage of mobile handheld ECG tele-monitoring devices by ambulance services and will present case studies of services in Brazil, Italy and in Russia.
Ambulance staffs (paramedics) use the devices to monitor people injured in car accidents or in various emergency situations at home. They can record the ECG trace and transmit it within minutes to a remote medical centre using their mobile phones. The service provides significant benefits, including critical time savings, enhanced level of emergency treatment, expert guidance to the ambulance staff and increased chances for patient recovery form critical situations.
Atzmon has presented already opportunities for cooperation in the field of Telemedicine and Home Telehealth, at a special seminar on technological cooperation between Brazil and Israel.
Aerotel Medical Systems will present new innovative and affordable personal Mobile Health (mHealth) solutions at the ATA 2010 conference, which will take place in San Antonio, Texas USA on May 16-18, 2010.
Aerotel will use the three day expo to demonstrate its Mobile-CliniQ, a mobile phone application that enables remote monitoring of various health parameters, such as electrocardiogram (ECG), blood pressure, blood glucose level, weight, etc.
This and other solutions, including e-CliniQ homecare, and other advanced telemedicine and telecare systems, will be presented by Ofer Atzmon, VP Business Development and Marketing, at Aerotel's Booth 825 at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center.
ATA 2010 is the world’s largest international meeting and tradeshow, which is focusing exclusively on telemedicine and telehealth. It is organized by The American Telemedicine Association and is aimed at answering growing public demand for telemedicine, which is now widely recognized as an integral part of modern quality healthcare.
With the spreading usage of smart phones, Web applications, remote monitoring devices and social media, a growing number of patients are using these tools to improve their own healthcare. At the ATA 2010, the advantages of telemedicine will be exposed in educational sessions, professional networking and access to vendors.
The general sessions at ATA 2010 feature insightful keynotes, including Aneesh Chopra, Federal Chief Technology Officer of the United States, MG James K. Gilman, Commanding General, US Army Medical Research, and Materiel Command and Fort Detrick, and John P. Howe, President & CEO of the international health foundation, Project HOPE.
Healthcare Smartphone apps are expected to significantly contribute to mHealth revenues according to a report released by Juniper Research.
The number of mobile fitness and healthcare application has already reached some 5,000. Most healthcare apps provide health information to professionals or end users, while fitness apps are available to measure calorie intake or measure distance travelled for those running.
According to the report healthcare Smartphone apps are expected to significantly contribute to mHealth revenues. Eventually a new market will spawn for advanced apps which integrate sensors worn on the body. It further indicated that in the past eighteen months there has been a renewed interest in mHealth from operators globally.
"Mobile monitoring will demonstrate substantial growth in the US and some other developed markets,” said Anthony Cox, Senior Analyst at Juniper Research.
Cox noted, however, that while mobile monitoring will contribute to healthcare cost savings in developed markets, national wealth and the structure of the healthcare market in a given geographical region will have an important bearing on the extent to which it is rolled out. "In Africa, for example, the opportunities for mHealth monitoring will be limited, instead, SMS based education programs will be rolled out there and these can be of great benefit."
The report also indicated that income from remote patient monitoring over cellular networks is expected to rise to almost $1.9 billion globally by 2014. The writers added that heart based monitoring in the US accounts for the bulk of early mobile monitoring roll-outs.
