According to a new research report from Wellesley, Mass.-based BCC Research, the global market for technology products used in elderly care was valued at $2.7 billion in 2012 and is expected to reach $3.2 billion by 2013. BCC Research projects the market to reach nearly $7.2 billion by 2018, and register a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.7 percent.
According to BCC Research analysts, the national health expenditure in the United States was approximately $2.8 trillion in 2012, as compared to $2.5 trillion in 2010. In large part, these spending increments are, of course, due to an aging society. Moreover, the amount spent on healthcare for older Americans is three to five times greater than the cost of care for someone under age 55.
"Seniors overwhelmingly want to age in place, but family members living far away worry about their elderly relatives living alone," the report's authors wrote. "Advances in communications and information technology have created products that make remote monitoring feasible. Smart phones, personal digital assistants and wireless networks are everywhere, including within seniors’ homes. These technologies carry both economic and emotional appeal to caregivers and the elderly."
Broadly defined, elder-care technologies are products and systems that increase the health status and quality of life for seniors. Information and communication technologies can augment the quality and efficiency of care provision, thus improving both the aging and care giving experience. In addition, monitoring technologies have the potential to improve safety for older citizens, manage their health, and assist them in maintaining their independence, according to the report.
Elder-care technologies include two groups of monitoring systems: home telehealth and safety monitoring. Home telehealth is the use of technology to deliver care in patient’s residence and includes the monitoring of the patient’s physiological parameters and symptoms, as well as education about the condition. Safety monitoring includes assist-call devices, medication-management products, wander-management systems, fall-management devices, smart-home systems, and robotically enhanced mobility-assistance devices.
Such technology holds the promise of significant cost savings for the healthcare system by enhancing the ability of providers to provide timely intervention prior to a deterioration point to the need for acute care.