By 2019, the global medical device connectivity market is expected to reach $33.5 billion, according to a report from Transparency Market Research, FierceHealthIT reports (Hall, FierceHealthIT, 11/26).
The report estimated a 38% increase in the medical connectivity device market value, up from $3.5 billion in 2012.
The report attributed the calculated growth in the market value to an increased need for:
- Patient safety;
- Productivity of health care institutions;
- Minimizing hospital readmissions;
- Saved nursing hours; and
- Workflow automation (Walsh, Clinical Innovation & Technology, 11/26).
According to the report, North America accounted for 62% of the medical device connectivity market in 2012, largely because of an increase in electronic health record adoption (FierceHealthIT, 11/26).
The report found that hospitals were the largest consumers of medical device connectivity services in 2012 and are expected to maintain the leading position through 2019 (Clinical Innovation & Technology, 11/26). Home health care was the second-biggest consumer of such services.
In addition, the report identified some factors that could inhibit the growth of the medical device connectivity market, including:
