We all have heard about Medical apps available for our smart devices, and how they are becoming more sophisticated. A recent report by Business Intelligence confirms the revolution that Mobile is bringing in Healthcare (referred to as mobile medicine, or mHealth).
2. Apple’s senior VP of worldwide marketing, Phil Schiller
announced in the Apple’s recent keynote that the new
iPhone 5s will come equipped with a “motion coprocessor”
chip called the M7, which continuously measures data from
the phone's accelerometer, gyroscope, and compass. The 5s
be able to tell if you're stationary, walking, or even driving.
Apple has also created an API for developers called
CoreMotion API to develop health tracking apps.
This announcement reminded us of the Apple’s 2009 World
Wide Developer Conference, where they demonstrated on-
stage as how blood pressure monitors and blood glucose
meters could connect to the iPhone 3G via cables or
Bluetooth.
3. We all have heard about Medical apps available for our
smart devices, and how they are becoming more
sophisticated. A recent report by Business Intelligence titled
“Mobile Is Helping To Spur The Next Revolution In Health
Care — The Transfer Of Power To Consumers” confirms the
revolution that Mobile is bringing in Healthcare (referred to
as mobile medicine, or mHealth).
Advocates envision a future in which patients self-perform
an EKG with the results automatically uploaded for
physician review, where doctors administer comprehensive
smartphone physicals, and ophthalmologists can capture
high resolution photos of the inner eye without dilating
pupils.
4. •Research from MarketsandMarkets estimates that global revenues
from the mobile health industry will eclipse $6 billion in 2013. The
research firm also projects a compound annual growth rate exceeding
30% through 2018, when the market will reach a robust $23.5 billion.
•A report from research2guidance is slightly more aggressive,
projecting the market will grow to reach $26 billion by 2017.
•Another report by PwC — based on what survey respondents would
be willing to pay for mobile health services — brackets these figures.
PwC estimated the addressable market at $7.7 billion to $43 billion.
Size of Mobile Health Industry
6. •There are already roughly 100,000 health applications available in
major app stores, and the top 10 mobile health applications generate
up to 4 million free and 300,000 paid daily downloads.
•By 2017, research2guidance estimates that over 50% of mobile users
will have downloaded at least one mobile health app.
•A recent study by MobileHealth News suggested that 90% of chronic
patients would readily accept a prescription for a mobile app compared
to just 66% willing to accept a prescription for medication.
•Fitness devices such as the Fitbit, Jawbone UP bracelet, and the Nike
+ FuelBand have seen respectable sales and mainstream consumer
acceptance as well.
Consumer Acceptance And Adoption
8. •Medical schools at the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard
University conducted a survey to find what the most-favored apps were
among students. The collective findings yielded ten unique app names,
all of them available on both major platforms. The trend toward dual
iOS and Android compatibility will likely continue for the major health
apps as developers of mobile health apps will aim to maximize their
reach.
•Are health apps paid or free? Unlike many app categories in which
free apps dominate, a substantial minority of health apps are paid.
What Mobile Operating Systems
Support Mobile Health Usage?
9. Here are some key stats on the health app
market:
•Forty-two percent of apps rely on a paid
b u s i n e s s m o d e l , a c c o r d i n g t o
research2guidance.
•Only 15% of apps target health care
professionals, and the balance aims at
consumers.
•App download revenue accounts for only
about 9% of total market revenue in the next
five years, according to research2guidance.
What Mobile Operating Systems
Support Mobile Health Usage?
58%
42%
Free Apps
Paid Apps
10. Estimates vary, but around 85% of apps are designed for primary use
by the consumer or the patient. These perform a wide range of
functions from simple to complex but may be broadly categorized as
follows:
•Physical Fitness And Personal Health.
•Self-Measurement.
•Health Information Management.
•Self-Testing – Physical Specimen.
•Self-Testing – Sensors.
Doctors play a critical role, even in apps that patients administer
themselves, as results must still be interpreted by professionals. There
are also apps aimed at helping doctors in terms of their own tasks,
apart from their interactions with patients.
Usage of Medical Apps
11. The response in the medical professional community has been largely
positive, though as recently as 2009, it wasn’t as positive. A survey
conducted then by CTIA indicated that only about a quarter of doctors
and specialists felt that patients would benefit from mobile services.
Fast-forward to 2013 and that number has jumped to more than 90%,
according to a survey conducted by eClinicalWorks. Eighty-nine percent
of those physician respondents indicated they were likely to recommend
a mobile app to a patient, and that represents a significant shift in
mindset in only a few years’ time.
Physicians have proven themselves to be relatively tech-savvy as well. A
survey from 2011 said 80% of physicians owned a smartphone and 58%
owned an iPad or planned to buy one in the coming year.
What is Professional’s Response to
Medical Apps?
13. •The first stage was led by consumer-friendly products — particularly those
tied to fitness and general wellbeing. They laid the foundation for mobile as a
platform for personal health monitoring, and pointed to future directions for
innovation.
•The second stage, which we have just entered, will see apps and mobile-
connected devices permeate the medical field. The most recent solutions are
paving the way for remote mobile diagnoses and efficient communications
between physician and patient. Other apps bordering on the stuff of science
fiction — smart diapers that can detect viruses in babies for instance — are
in the works.
•The third stage will occur once these trends — mobile, wearables, and data-
collection devices — mesh together and provide the backbone for
optimization and customization of preventive health, medical treatment, and
hospital processes. Soon, we will find ourselves at the intersection of
mHealth and big data. Big data and personalization still haven't shaped
this market to the extent they no doubt will in the future.
What Future Holds for mHealth
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Credits:
https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-rise-of-the-mobile-health-industry-2013-8