Busy ERs Driving Patient Monitoring Sales

In the United States alone there are over 35 million hospital admissions each year and nearly 120 million people visit hospital emergency departments each year. Additionally, outpatient visits to hospitals—including laboratory, imaging, and rehabilitation visits—has increased to about 481 million visits annually and more than 4 million babies are born each year.  These statistics require a significant number of hospital resources, namely staff and available beds.  However, a recent survey by the American Hospital Association has discovered capacity constraints, primarily at the emergency department level.  In addition to hospitals operating at capacity or over capacity, the concern for ED diversion (which sends patients in route by ambulance to nearby hospitals) has resulted in a number of facilities looking for ways to address the issue.  

 Portable monitoring devices may reduce some of the diversion.  Additionally, staff shortages are another cause of diversion which may be addressed with improved efficiency and workflow gained by using more efficient monitoring devices.

Our latest report indicated that remote and wireless patient monitoring systems more than doubled between 2007 and 2011.  The firm made the finding in its  recently published report, Remote and Wireless Patient Monitoring Markets.   Part of the reason they are growing so fast are the overcrowding at emergency rooms in the United States.   

 According to the report, advances in remote patient monitoring include new peripherals, real-time audio and video for “face-to-face” interaction between clinicians and patients, wireless communication, systems that “sort” the vast amount of data collected in order to put it into the context of a patient’s condition, portable and ambulatory monitors, web-based access to the patient record, systems that transfer data to an electronic medical record (EMR), and full-service outsourcing that includes a clinician to evaluate data and send a report to the attending physician.    


 The U.S. market for these advanced patient monitoring includes wireless and remote patient monitors (equipment and applications), applications and equipment for processing data, and applications and equipment for transferring patient monitoring data into an EMR.  The U.S. market had a value of $3.9 billion in 2007, increasing to $8.9 billion by 2011 . 

There are several factors driving double-digit growth in this market.  These include the aging of the population, increasing healthcare costs, dwindling healthcare resources which compel organizations to find devices that can help with staff shortages. 

More information about remote and wireless patient monitoring including models, companies competing in the market and future growth can be obtained in Kalorama Information’s report.  Remote and Wireless Patient Monitoring markets.   Information about the report can be obtained at http://www.kaloramainformation.com/Remote-Wireless-Patient-7043770/

High Income Pet Owners Driving Vet Diagnostics

Driven by high income US consumers spending on pets, the veterinary diagnostics market exceeded $1.5 billion in 2011, according to Kalorama Information. We estimated testing revenues for food animals as well testing performed on pets.  But it is those consumer animal sales that are driving growth, according to our  just-released report: World Market for Veterinary Diagnostics.

The report indicates that U.S. consumers spending the most generously on their pets’ health and wellness. Households in the United States with $70,000 or more in annual income have dramatically increased their share in the veterinary services market over the past decade.  The key driver of continued market growth for veterinary practices and suppliers of premium instruments and products is increasing standards for care of companion animals and the role of diagnostic analysis adapted from the field of medical diagnostics.  Consumers in Europe and the rest of the world generally spend less on companion animal healthcare.   According to the report,  the recession hurt companion animal spending broadly but high income families will increase their share of spending and this in turn drives testing reagent and instrument sales to veterinary laboratories. 

“Increasing standards for care of companion animals is driving growth,” said Emil Salazar, Kalorama analyst and the author of the report.  “Most notably, households in the United States with $70,000 or more in annual income have dramatically increased their share in the veterinary services market over the past decade.”  

Although expected to recover from low single-digit growth in veterinary analyzer sales and flat-lined immunoassay sales, future market growth through 2017 will be handicapped by the incomplete recovery of consumer markets in the United States and Europe and, later, the growing saturation of analyzers among veterinary clinics. Veterinary analyzer consumables will continue to lead growth in the companion animal diagnostics market, with minimal contributions from immunoassay and molecular test kits.  The report, World Market for Veterinary Diagnostics, provides more information including breakouts for various segments of veterinary diagnostics, and discussions of trends in the industry. Profiles of key competitors are also included.