Emerging market trailblazers

Patients and doctors in emerging markets are much more likely to use mHealth than those in developed countries — and more payers in emerging markets cover the cost of mHealth than in developed countries.

Why? Existing healthcare is scarce — in many cases, mobile technology is the only (rather than alternative) affordable tool to reach people. The lack of existing infrastructure means fewer entrenched interests, so lower barriers. Change is more welcome.

mHealth: Emerging markets lead the West

59% of patients in emerging markets use mHealth, compared to 35% in developed markets

Which of the following types of mHealth applications/services would you be interested in using?

  • Applications/services that help me manage my own well being (eg, track weight or calorie intake) through entering data manually
  • Applications/services that help me manage my own well being (eg, track weight or calorie intake) and get their data automatically (eg, from wireless weigh scales)
  • Applications/services that help me communicate better with healthcare professionals
  • Applications/services that integrate with medical devices to send data on my condition to healthcare professionals (eg, apps that allow a glucose meter to communicate via bluetooth with my phone to send blood sugar levels to my doctor)
  • Applications/services that gather general information on healthcare, including drugs
  • Which of the following types of mHealth applications/services would you be interested in using?

 

Doctors and payers in emerging markets are more likely to recommend patients use mHealth solutions than those in developed countries.

What types of services provided via mobile devices has your organisation begun to pay for, and which does it intend to pay for in the next three years?

  • Text based consultations
  • Telephone based consultations
  • Video consultations
  • Administrative communication (eg, appointment reminders)
  • Drug adherence and other health-related communication
  • Medical professionals receiving data as part of patient monitoring
  • Analysis of general health and wellness data gathered by ...
  • Access by patients to portions of his or her medical record

 

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