We're hearing more and more about the Internet of Things in Healthcare (IoMT), but what is the market potential behind this term? In short, we can say that the Internet of Things in Healthcare is a set of technological devices used to collect, send, and analyze medical data via the Internet, such as remote monitoring systems, surgical robots, or other devices connected to the patient's bedside, designed to improve patient care and the efficiency of the healthcare team.
A Deloitte report states that the Internet of Things in healthcare is driven by “a surge in connected medical devices capable of generating, collecting, analyzing, or transmitting medical data or images.”
This technological infrastructure can provide more accurate diagnoses, lower rates of medical errors, and lower costs for healthcare services. According to a study by Juniper Research, to capitalize on these opportunities, smart hospitals are projected to deploy 7.4 million medical IoT devices globally by 2026, representing more than 3,850 smart devices per hospital, a 231% increase overall compared to 2021. Adam Wears, a research analyst at Juniper Research, explained, “Smart hospital technologies generate massive amounts of data, meaning that edge computing capabilities provided by network operators will be critical to the success of medical IoT systems.”
The smart hospital market is projected to reach $59 billion by 2026, up from $29 billion in 2021, representing an average annual growth of 15%. The US and China are leading the global adoption of smart hospitals, with the market value reaching $17 billion by 2021. This is a result of digital health initiatives implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to highly digitized healthcare infrastructures in their respective countries. By 2026, these countries will account for over 60% of global smart hospital spending.
The study also shows that smart hospitals in the United States and China are leading the global adoption of IoT devices in healthcare, with these two countries accounting for 21% and 41% of connected devices, respectively, by 2026. In addition to the high levels of digitization already implemented in healthcare infrastructure, the digitization initiatives implemented during the pandemic have also been key to ensuring these countries' leadership.
Furthermore, researchers emphasize that remote monitoring is key to the delivery of smart hospital services. They comment that the accelerated adoption of this service delivery method increased significantly during the pandemic due to the difficulties of face-to-face care. This trend is expected to solidify over the next five years "as patients become accustomed to remote monitoring."
However, researchers caution that the instantaneous (real-time) nature of remote monitoring requires low-latency and high-bandwidth networks to ensure uninterrupted and consistent transmission of health data.
Innovative Examples
CENSIS, Scotland’s Centre for Innovation in Sensing, Imaging and Internet of Things technologies, is supporting a range of projects in hospitals and healthcare facilities to explore ways to improve staff efficiency, enhance the patient and care team experience, and increase sustainability and save public funds.
In addition to the clinical field, CENSIS also helps monitor room usage, preventative maintenance of equipment, and track expensive portable devices.
Another driving force behind the Internet of Things (IoT) in healthcare is Long-Range Low-Power Networks (LPWANs), which can operate for years on small, inexpensive batteries and are capable of transmitting very small data packets, making them ideal for monitoring heart rate, body temperature, or blood oxygen saturation. This has the potential to provide personalized care in the home environment.
One of CENSIS's key growth areas over the next decade relates to a physical project providing innovative, high-quality care for older adults and those with long-term physical disabilities. The aim is to integrate medical IoT technology into the community to ensure the quality of life for its residents.
Scotland’s medical innovations also showcase other examples, such as smart pills that use tiny sensors to transmit data to implanted artery devices that can alert medical professionals to early signs of stroke.
Industry Forecast
It is undeniable that the pandemic has accelerated the development and adoption of digital technologies in the healthcare industry. Investment and business in 2021 exceeded previous years. According to Spex Capital, a digital health and medical technology investment management firm, the industry's compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is 28.5%, and it is projected to reach approximately $650 billion by 2026.
