Global RFID in Healthcare Market Valued at $2.58 Billion in 2018

In its new report, “RFID in Healthcare Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Product (Systems & Software, Tags), By Application (Blood, Patient, Pharmaceutical, Asset Tracking), By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2019 – 2025,” Grand View Research reports that the global RFID in healthcare market size was valued at $2.58 billion in 2018 and is anticipated to expand at a CAGR of 22.4% during the forecast period.
 
This can be attributed to key factors such as rising requirement for reducing operating costs, adoption of RFID in healthcare, and mandates for increasing patient safety. Increasing demand for efficient supply chain management and the number of patient visits to hospitals are also some of the key driving factors.
 
Integration of RFID enables effective management of inventory, prevention of stock out and overstock situations. These systems enable real-time data management, which leads to prevention of inventory loss and theft. In the operating room, RFID tagging of medical devices enables staff to track essential devices used in surgeries with ease and help improve patient safety. Increasing need for patient monitoring and growing concerns on patient safety are anticipated to further contribute to the rising adoption of RFID.
 
RFID enables better communication, adequate patient monitoring, patient identification, and patient tracking. This method of tracking aids in reducing medication errors and enhancing patient safety. Hospitals with RFID technology for patient tracking provide wrist bands to the patients with their complete information. These bands hold information about the medical history, treatment regimen, and details of the ailment.
 
Pharmaceutical tracking segment generated the largest revenue of $778.88 million in 2018. Rising adoption of the technology to identify the counterfeit drugs is among the key factors contributing to the growth.
 
In the recent years, there has been an increase in the proliferation and distribution of counterfeit drugs that pose an increased risk for health hazards. The RFID technology assists in screening and detection of such drugs and help in refraining from the distribution in the market. Furthermore, this technology in pharmaceutical companies helps in inventory management and minimizing the labeling errors.
 
However, the patient tracking segment is anticipated to witness the highest growth over the forecast period. Patient tracking in large and medium hospitals is a critical process for scheduling operating room and diagnostic room appointments. Tracking the movement of each patient across different sections of hospital using this technology helps reduce the turnaround and waiting time and hence the segment is expected to register the fastest CAGR owing to the associated advantages. Increasing investments by medium and large hospitals is expected to boost the growth.
 
The tags segment held the largest market share and is expected to register the fastest CAGR of 22.6% over the forecast period. Rising awareness regarding the benefits of these devices is expected to drive the growth.
 
North America held the largest market share of about 45% in 2018, attributed to the key factors, such as rising number of hospitals, increase in regulations for patient safety, and mandates for tracking medical devices. Asia Pacific is anticipated to witness the fastest CAGR of 24.9% during the forecast period.