Talkin’ Bout Big Bucks: Wireless Health and Fitness Device Market to Hit $1.8B by 2019

Follow

Even though the year has just begun, financial predictions are already out for the wireless health and fitness device market. According to a recent article published in mobihealthnews, Juniper Research, a UK-based online and digital research firm, is predicting revenues of $320 million by the close of 2015. While this number is certainly promising, the real “head turner” is the four to five year outlook: Juniper also foresees a sixfold increase from 2015 to 2019, with the market reaching a whopping $1.8 billion in annual revenues.

With these statistics out in the open, there’s no denying that a wireless health and fitness device “explosion” is upon us. As far as the experts are concerned, however, there are a few key points to keep in mind as the healthtech arena moves forward. In order to succeed, says connected fitness and health author James Moar, a market shift from hardware to software must occur: “People want to interact with the devices at the app level [beyond merely collecting biometric data]. Because of this, and the omnipresence of sensors, the importance of the hardware will diminish at a much faster rate” than other segments of the consumer electronics market.

Juniper predicts that major growth in the wireless health device market will be driven by the “freemium model,” or a paradigm that offers a basic app and (potentially) device for free and then charges for more sophisticated add-ons. Consumers will be able to track personal fitness and health data for free, but will pay for apps and services that go a step further—interpreting and analyzing the data to make it meaningful. In all, 12.9 million users are predicted to be engaged with these paid service platforms by 2019—will you be one of them?

For more information on key findings, check out Juniper Research’s full press release here!

SOURCES: mobihealthnews and Juniper Research 

About DoseSpot 
DoseSpot is a Surescripts certified e-Prescribing platform specifically designed to integrate with electronic health record, electronic dental record, practice management and telehealth software. DoseSpot is certified to e-Prescribe controlled substances and has provided simple, affordable and integratable e-Prescribing solutions to healthcare IT companies since 2009. For more information, please visit www.DoseSpot.com.

Healthtech Happy Hospitals: Miami Children’s and its Mobile App Endeavors

Follow

Over the past few years, mobile technologies of various sorts have proven vital in hospitals and healthcare centers across America with usage rates increasing rapidly for both providers and patients alike. As profiled in mobihealthnews just this week, Miami Children’s Hospital is continuing this trend with two newly released health-specific mobile offerings.

According to Miami Children’s Hospital CIO Edward Martinez, the hospital has developed a care transition app that aids clinicians in the hand-off of patients between shifts. This app includes a patient-facing option as well, allowing patients to keep track of such staff transitions. There is also a parent-facing component to this app, complete with a video consultation feature to enable Q&A between parent and provider after a child is discharged from the hospital.

Another app Miami Children’s has created is a care coordination product for clinician use. At the end of a shift, this app allows providers across all specialties to quickly enter information about a patient’s condition on a handy mobile device and pass it on to the next clinician. This way, the next attending physician does not miss any critical patient information related to symptoms or condition.

In his interview with mobihealthnews, Martinez highlighted one key observation pertaining to the patients and families that enter Miami Children’s Hospital on a daily basis: the parental generation is more mobile-savvy than ever before. The hospital is capitalizing on this occurrence by engaging parents early on with activities such as texting and video chatting. With 2015 expected to produce yet another boom in the mobile health and telemedicine arena, it is very likely that large hospitals from California to Maine will follow soon follow in the footsteps of Miami Children’s.

SOURCE: mobihealthnews

To see some neat screenshots of Miami Children’s newly released mobile health apps, check out the full article here!

About DoseSpot 
DoseSpot is a Surescripts certified e-Prescribing platform specifically designed to integrate with electronic health record, electronic dental record, practice management and telehealth software. DoseSpot is certified to e-Prescribe controlled substances and has provided simple, affordable and integratable e-Prescribing solutions to healthcare IT companies since 2009. For more information, please visit www.DoseSpot.com.

Healthcare Startup Spotlight: AdhereTech

Follow

Startup: AdhereTech
Website: www.adheretech.com
Funding: $2.35 Million as of July 9, 2014
Overview: AdhereTech created patented smart pill bottles to improve medication adherence and patient engagement. These bottles automatically measure if patients are adherent, and all data is wirelessly transmitted and analyzed in real-time. If a dose is missed, AdhereTech reminds the patient via automated phone call or text message – and on-bottle lights and chimes. Additionally, the system can solicit feedback from patients via text or phone call, determining why the dose was missed.

Sources: angel.co/adheretech & adheretech.com

About DoseSpot

DoseSpot is a Surescripts™ certified e-Prescribing platform specifically designed to integrate with electronic health record, electronic dental record, practice management and telehealth software. DoseSpot has provided simple, affordable and integratable e-Prescribing solutions to healthcare IT companies since 2009. For more information, please visit www.DoseSpot.com.

“The Digital Doc” today’s mhealth, and what doctors are saying about it

Follow

Mobile health (known as mhealth) is one of the fastest growing markets today, and has been referred to by techies and health professionals alike as the “invisible link” between patients and doctors. With mobile applications at their disposal, doctors can more easily provide care with services moved to the cloud, allowing data to be accessed anywhere, anytime. Exactly how prevalent are these apps in the doctor’s office? Take a look below to find out.

In a recent study conducted by MedData Group, a healthcare marketing firm in Massachusetts, 2/3 of American doctors surveyed use mhealth apps while on the job. Nearly 50% of these doctors say they use mobile apps to look at medication interactions.

These percentages are expected to change over the next 12 months, with an anticipated increase in the number of doctors using apps that allow for EHR access. Many of these EHR apps will reduce time-consuming administrative work that doctors are currently subjected to.

According to Juniper Research’s latest report on the mhealth market, mobile apps are enhancing overall consumer engagement in healthcare by increasing information flow. Costs are being lowered by better decision-making, fewer in-person visits, greater treatment adherence, and remote monitoring. As of now, the overarching conclusion in the mhealth sphere is this: doctors are open to adopting a wide variety of mhealth technologies, if they see a clear benefit.

THE FINANCIAL FACT$:

• According to the Global Mobile Health Market Report 2013-2017 by research2guidance, the mhealth market will reach $26 billion USD globally by 2017
• Juniper Research’s latest report on the mhealth market forecasts cumulative cost savings of up to $36 billion USD globally over the next 3 years
• Consumers are currently driving much of the demand for mhealth technologies and applications

SOURCES: Huffington Post and Xconomy

For more information on physician interactions with mobile and connected health platforms, check out MedData’s official report here.

About DoseSpot

DoseSpot is a Surescripts™ certified e-Prescribing platform specifically designed to integrate with electronic health record, electronic dental record, practice management and telehealth software. DoseSpot has provided simple, affordable and integratable e-Prescribing solutions to healthcare IT companies since 2009. For more information, please visit www.DoseSpot.com.

Medication Adherence Apps Raise Healthcare Hopes

Follow

Here at DoseSpot,

We’re all about changing the face of America’s prescription system. With our e-prescribing integration platforms, the goal is to make prescription writing and transmission more efficient and secure. Another technological tool making some innovative headway on the prescription front is the smartphone medication adherence app.

Medication non-adherence is a prevalent and costly problem that contributes to poor treatment outcomes and exhausts valuable healthcare resources. The 2013 National Report on Medication Adherence in America estimated that non-adherence is costing the U.S. health care system a whopping $290 billion annually! Interventions to mitigate non-adherence have been largely unsuccessful in the past, but a slew of easy-to-use apps are hoping to improve outcomes.

Using Apple, Android, or Blackberry smartphones, patients can download medication adherence apps such as (hyperlink) MyMedSchedule, MediSafe and RxmindMe, and set basic medication reminders, create schedules, track lab results and more. Former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop once said, “drugs don’t work in patients who don’t take them” and if medication adherence apps can reduce existing headache-inducing treatment blunders, U.S. healthcare providers may finally be able to breathe a much needed sigh of relief.

Sources: Medscape and National Community Pharmacists Association

For more information on medication adherence apps that are currently on the market, explore this helpful link from the American Pharmacists Association:

http://www.pharmacist.com/medication-adherence-there%E2%80%99s-app.

CHALLENGE: Calling all tech-powered women! Do you have what it takes to tackle the U.S. medication adherence issue? If so, check out the 2014 Surescripts Adherence Challenge. Applications are being accepted through July 22!

About DoseSpot

DoseSpot is a Surescripts™ certified e-Prescribing platform specifically designed to integrate with electronic health record, electronic dental record, practice management and telehealth software. DoseSpot has provided simple, affordable and integratable e-Prescribing solutions to healthcare IT companies since 2009. For more information, please visit www.DoseSpot.com.

The Health Tracking Race: Who Will Win?

Follow

Ready to get fit from the comfort of your own smartphone or tablet? Recent developments in the tech sphere likely have you covered. Over the past few weeks, three major players in the digital health industry–Google, Apple and Samsung–have unveiled newly polished, fitness-ready consumer health apps for public viewing. The initial verdicts on Google Fit, Samsung’s Gear Fit, and Apple’s iOS 8 Health app are officially out. Take a look below to see what consumers are saying:

Google Fit 

Google Product Manager Ellie Powers describes the new Google Fit platform at the 2014 Google I/O, Google’s annual developers’ conference held in San Francisco.

Basics: fitness and health tracking platform for Android smart devices. Google Fit will aggregate users’ fitness data in one place, and sync data from popular wearable devices created by Nike, Adidas, and more.

Pros: comprehensive data analysis in one location, complete picture of users’ fitness and better tracking of fitness goals, single set of APIs for all health products.

Cons: too similar to already-existing data aggregation platforms, failure to address how medical professionals might access this data, potential compatibility issues.

Gear Fit by Samsung

Basics: a wearable activity-tracking wristband with a heart rate monitor, pedometer, and flexible display screen. Well-suited for basic activities such as running, walking, cycling, and hiking.

Pros: excellent display resolution, customizable screen features (backgrounds and clock face), changeable watch bands, compatible with at least 17 Samsung smartphones and tablets, notable ‘smartwatch’ features (phone call, text message, and email alerts).

Cons: error-prone and “bare bone” activity trackers, faulty mileage calculations, very low battery life (vs. JawBone and FitBit models), poor accessibility (requires bulky “charging cradle”).

Apple iOS 8 Health

     

Basics: iPhone app that allows users to collect biometric information (i.e. heart rate, blood pressure, etc.) and automatically send it to doctors or hospitals via the Medical ID feature.

Pros: comprehensive set of activity trackers (fitness, nutrition, sleep patterns, blood glucose levels, cholesterol levels, etc.), customizable and seamless user interface.

Cons: performance concerns with exchange of medical data (physicians bombarded with low-priority data and patient compliance issues).

Sources: TechCrunch, Apple, and The Verge. 

Need more convincing? Engage your critical consumer eye with these helpful articles:

Gear Fit by Samsung: http://www.forbes.com/sites/ewanspence/2014/06/22/samsung-gear-fit-review-a-combined-fitness-band-and-stylish-smartwatch-for-your-galaxy-smartphones/

Google Fit: http://news360.com/article/243439279

Apple iOS 8 Health: http://9to5mac.com/2014/06/02/a-closer-look-at-ios-8s-health-app-video/

About DoseSpot

DoseSpot is a Surescripts™ certified e-Prescribing platform specifically designed to integrate with electronic health record, electronic dental record, practice management and telehealth software. DoseSpot has provided simple, affordable and integratable e-Prescribing solutions to healthcare IT companies since 2009. For more information, please visit www.DoseSpot.com.