NEW YORK (GBI Research)- Increasing numbers of patients are choosing to install at-home medical equipment, as technological advancements and reductions in government healthcare funding mean that cutting costs in healthcare expenditure is essential, according to a new report by business intelligence expert GBI Research.
The new report* states that the shift of healthcare delivery from hospitals to the home marks an immense change in the modern healthcare industry. Technological improvements, rising disposable incomes and a notable decrease in the number of hospital beds in some areas have all contributed to an increase in the demand for home healthcare devices in recent years - much to the delight of device manufacturers.
In order to meet the growing need for medical care at home, homecare devices have become more easily available and have expanded to include advanced-technology respiration devices. Innovations in design and technology have led to user-friendly devices, which enables patients to be treated without disturbing their normal routine. These are increasingly being adopted worldwide, in an effort to improve individuals' quality of life and reduce public healthcare spending.
Rising demand for home healthcare equipment is having a positive impact on the respiratory devices market, encouraged by new respiratory devices such as portable nebulizers, and Continuous Positive Air Pressure (CPAP) and Bilevel Positive Air Pressure (BiPAP) machines designed for use at home.
A large portion of the homecare device-seeking market are patients suffering from sleep disorders such as Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) and respiratory diseases such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), which is commonly caused by smoking.
Roughly 300 million people around the world suffer from OSA, the prevalence of which increases with age, reaching 30% to 80% in the elderly population. The affected population has therefore grown during recent years in proportion with the globally ageing population.
COPD similarly affects a massive global population of around 400 to 600 million people, with about 12 million patients in the US alone. These common conditions suffered by a huge population therefore represent a potential goldmine for medical device companies.
The global anesthesia and respiratory devices market is forecast to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 4.7% during the period 2010-2017, to exceed $14 billion by 2017.
