IoT in Health Care Market to Grow at 19.9% CAGR Between 2019-2025: Research

The global Internet of Things in the healthcare market size was valued at USD $147.1 billion in 2018 and is anticipated to witness a CAGR of 19.9% over the forecast period. Rising adoption of wearable technology, investments for implementing digital technologies in healthcare institutions, and the emergence of connected care are the key factors boosting industry growth. Technological advancements and growing geriatric population coupled with the rising prevalence of chronic conditions are also positively impacting the market expansion.

According to research conducted by a network provider company in Aruba, nearly 87% of the healthcare organizations across the globe will adopt IoT services by 2019. Researchers surveyed approximately 3,100 IT enterprises including healthcare and business decision-makers across 20 countries. This study concluded that healthcare institutions have introduced IoT for improving patient monitoring, fostering innovations, and reducing costs.

Connected technology is one of the primary applications of IoT in healthcare. Such devices are majorly used for patient monitoring, taking readings, observing patterns, and notifying patients in case of imperfections in patterns. This technology is also used in real-time monitoring at-risk patients, making informed decisions, and preventing emergency room visits.

Reduction in waiting times at emergency rooms has also accelerated its adoption in medical management. Key companies are developing innovative software programs to address various issues in healthcare. For instance, to address an issue of the emergency department wait times, GE Healthcare developed a software program, AutoBed, which helped in reducing wait times for 50% of the patients that were in need for an inpatient bed.

Wide usage of connected technology in healthcare settings for managing operational workflows as well as clinical tasks is also one of the major growth drivers. It has enabled companies to develop a platform that aids in notifying future downtime of the systems by issuing the automatic alert. Philips, in collaboration with Open Market, has developed a remote sensor technology with mobile messaging, called e-Alert, that notifies the potential issue of the MRI system before its downtime. This technology won the Most Innovative IoT Solution award in 2017.

Services segment held the largest market share of 45% in 2018. The segment is further segmented into system integration services, training, and education, support & maintenance, and consulting. Growing demand for uninterrupted data flows boost the efficiency of the medical systems, enhance security, and improve informed decision-making in real-time is the key factor driving the services segment. Medical devices is another major segment, in terms of revenue share.

With the emergence of IoT, dependency on connected medical devices, such as wearable, implantable, and stationary medical devices, for health monitoring has increased. The growing need for connected health services for critically ill patients, overall reduced cost of care, better treatment outcomes, and real-time disease management are some of the factors driving IoT-enabled medical devices market. System and software segment is expected to witness the highest CAGR of 21.2% during the forecast years.

This growth is attributed to technological advancements and increasing investments by the market participants for the development of innovative connected solutions for the life science industry. Moreover, the rising adoption of digital technologies & connected systems in the health centers will drive the segment further. In the developed economies, the need for managing medical records is rising, which is positively impacting the demand for software solutions.

Cellular technology emerged as the largest segment. This technology allows sending a huge amount of data over a long distance. Cellular networks are increasingly used for medical applications, such as remote patient monitoring as it enables data from devices to be collected and made available to healthcare professionals in real-time. Thus, it is regarded as a safer, conducive, and faster connectivity solution for remote monitoring. It also enhances portability, usability, and versatility for connected medical devices.

All these factors help augment segment growth. Technological advancements in communication and connectivity industry are also driving the connectivity technology segment. Satellite segment is anticipated to witness the fastest CAGR of 23.9% over the forecast period. Rising use of satellite technology in various life science applications, such as management of emergencies, interconnectivity of medical data, and facilitating patient mobility, is driving the segment. Provision of connectivity across the wide areas covering remote locations has further increased the demand for satellite connectivity for various applications, such as telemedicine.

Hospitals and clinics accounted for the largest revenue share in 2018 and are projected to maintain dominance in the coming years. Improved functional and operational efficiency gained by hospitals due to IoT is a key factor for its extensive usage. IoT solutions allow improved disease management, patient experience, and treatment outcomes, leading to enhanced care delivery. Moreover, these solutions also help hospitals in the management of inventory, billing, and medical records, real-time communication, medication compliance, and hospital workflows improving the overall operational efficiency.

High investment by hospitals for accelerating the adoption of digital technology is also responsible for its largest revenue share. A shifting trend towards value-based care from fee for service in the developed economies is also likely to boost the adoption of IoT solutions in hospitals.

Clinical Research Organizations (CROs) segment is expected to register the highest CAGR of 20.5% over the forecast period. Growing adoption of IoT solutions for improving the accuracy of clinical research is a key factor driving the segment. Extensive use of these solutions has increased by CROs for improving patient recruitment and retention process, which are the potential issues in clinical research, is also estimated to spur the segment development.

Telemedicine held the largest revenue share in 2018. Growing demand for patient monitoring and rising prevalence of chronic diseases are the factors responsible for the segment’s largest revenue share. Recent advancements in telemedicine technology are further driving the demand for IoT solutions. Moreover, the rising adoption of smart wearable devices for remote monitoring will contribute to the segment growth.

Key companies focus on the development of innovative telemedicine solutions or devices for enhancing healthcare system. For instance, CareClix provides a wide range of telemedicine and telehealth services through remote consultations and high-definition video examinations. Doctor On Demand; MyTelemedicine; Teladoc; The Bottom Line and iCliniq are some of the major providers of IoT solutions for telemedicine.

Medication management is also expected to have significant growth during the forecast years. Wide usage of healthcare information systems, rising need for reducing medication errors while improving patient safety, and increasing adoption of mHealth for medication management are the factors driving the segment. The focus of key firms on developing an innovative solution in the area of medication management will boost the market further.

North America led the market in 2018. The growth is attributed to the rising adoption of healthcare IT solutions, the presence of key companies, legislative initiatives, such as HITECH Law, 2009, and availability of sophisticated healthcare IT infrastructure in this region.

The U.S. accounted for the largest revenue share in North America and is expected to maintain dominance over the forecast period. Technological advancements and various government initiatives promoting the adoption of digital platforms in the life science industry are the key factors contributing to the largest revenue share. There are various initiatives being undertaken for developing eHealth and clinical interoperability, which is also driving the market.

Asia Pacific is expected to emerge as the fastest-growing regional market. Improving health IT infrastructure, rising initiatives for promoting connected health services, and gradually increasing adoption of advanced technologies, such as smart wearables, are the key factors driving the region’s growth. Growing investment by the medical device and pharmaceutical companies in this region is also expected to drive the demand for IoT technologies.