Advancing M2M adoption in the healthcare industry is transforming medical and personal health devices, business models and patient engagement

Advancing M2M adoption in the healthcare industry is transforming medical and personal health devices, business models and patient engagement

A new report from Machina Research examines the impact that M2M will have on the healthcare sector: the likely adoption, the impact on clinical outcomes, and the implications for the sector.

The global healthcare sector is increasingly turning to machine-to-machine (M2M) technology and platforms to add improved cost efficiency, increase adherence to medical regimens and enhance medical outcomes. As a result of soaring medical costs particularly in the US and other markets, medical facilities are expanding the role of connected devices and sensors in care delivery to offer greater flexibility of chronic disease treatment, reach underserved populations and spark better patient engagement with their healthcare services.

Andy Castonguay, Principal Analyst with Machina Research and author of the new Sector Report: Machine-to-Machine (M2M) Communications in Healthcare 2013-23, remarked:

“In a country like the United States, with healthcare spending nearing 20% of national GDP, M2M technology may well provide the single most promising approach to expanding healthcare services in a cost effective manner.”

“While the cost dynamics of healthcare are a key factor driving innovation in the field, connected health devices and applications are also proving to be a key element in improving patient engagement and health.”

Despite the complexities of the healthcare privacy/security regulations, payment/reimbursement frameworks and medical organizations’ structures, advances in connected medical devices and services offer substantial promise for organizations looking to expand services, reduce costs and improve medical outcomes.

As a result of notable uptake of clinical remote monitoring, connected medical environments, worried well personal health monitoring and improved assisted living monitoring Machina Research forecasts that the installed base of M2M connected devices within the health sector will approach 847 million by 2023.

As illustrated in the chart below, North America will be the largest region for the duration of the forecast reaching 386 million connections by 2023, followed by Europe and Developed Asia Pacific. With this significant growth of connected devices and sensors, the M2M healthcare industry will generate USD90.9 billion in total revenues by 2023, outlined in the figure below, increasing at a CAGR of 17.2% from 2013.

Figure: Global healthcare M2M connections by region, 2013-2023 [Machina Research, 2014]
M2M connections by region
Source: Machina Research

The report is available as part of the Machina Research Advisory Service.

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