Is telehealth the future?
August 9, 2012
THE provision of healthcare
services via telecommunications
may be the way of the future,
according to a new report by
GlobalData.
The Telehealth and Telemedicine –
Global Opportunity Assessment,
Competitive Landscape and Market
Forecasts to 2018 report states that
telehealth may hold the potential
to change the way people receive
medical care, and predicts that the
worldwide telehealth and
telemedicine market will
experience a boom in growth over
the next few years as technology
expands in terms of the number of
applications and availability.
According to the report, the
global market for telehealth and
telemedicine will jump from $13.2
billion to $32.5 billion by 2018.
This double digit growth,
according to GlobalData, will be
driven by the need to increase the
reach of quality medical care to
remote locations, as well as to
reduce healthcare expenditure and
enable the optimal usage of limited
provider resources.
Other contributing growth factors
include the accelerated growth of
“robust telecommunication
technologies”, the increased
adoption of related healthcare IT
solutions and the readiness of
companies and governments to
explore this option.
“Currently the US dominates the
industry, holding a 51% share in
2011, but it is the Asia-Pacific
region that is estimated to exhibit
the most impressive growth,”
GlobalData stated.
Last year the Asia-Pacific region
contributed around $2 billion to the
telehealth and telemedicine
market, however this figure is
expected to quadruple to $8 billion
in the next eight years.
“This means a CAGR of 21%,
while the US and European markets
are expected to climb at the less
substantial rates of 12% and 13%,
respectively,” GlobalData said.
“Growth in the Asia-Pacific region
is expected to be driven by
improved awareness of the model’s
potential for expanding the
penetration of affordable medical
care to the wider population, with
the governments of India and China
rapidly adopting and pushing
telehealth to cater to the needs of
the huge rural patient population,”
GlobalData added.
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