For many consumers, a visit to the doctor soon will be as simple as turning on the television.
Tractica expects telehealth video visits to soar from 19.7 million last year to 158.4 annually in 2020. This and other findings are highlighted in a new report, "Telehealth Video Consultation."
"While many elements of digital and mobile health technologies are still emerging, the market for telehealth video consultations (TVCs) is one that has a firm foothold and is poised for strong and stable growth in the coming years," according to a report summary. "TVCs, also referred to as eConsults, eVisits, remote video consultations or even the broader term telemedicine, are expanding in terms of use cases, deployments and adoption."
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The challenge is for the benefits to overtake the obstacles. A key barrier to widespread use of TVCs has been the lack of reimbursement. These services also face resistance from physicians, patients, and regulatory bodies.
However, these problems may be offset by doctor shortages, rising health-care costs, an aging population and an increase in the number of people living with chronic disease. Plus, TVCs are well suited to a wide range of medical treatments.
Emerging technology is another positive. Key growth enablers include better video conferencing technologies, increased penetration of connected devices and expanded broadband adoption.
Providers and payers also are finding quantifiable value in deploying video-based patient monitoring solutions, both in terms of positive patient outcomes and cost savings. Tractica forecasts that non-clinical video consultations will outnumber clinical consultations by 2019.
Tractica is a market-intelligence firm in Boulder, Colo. The full 48-page report can be purchased at the Tractica website.
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Alan Goforth
Alan Goforth is a freelance writer in suburban Kansas City. In addition to freelancing for several publications, he has written a dozen books about sports and other topics.
