Global Patient-centric Healthcare App Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecast (2022 - 2027)

Market Overview

The patient-centric healthcare app (PCHA) market is anticipated to register a CAGR of nearly 20.5% during the forecast period.

The COVID-19 pandemic had an impact on the healthcare industry. The outbreak of COVID-19 led to disruption, challenges, limitations, and changes in each sector of every industry. The studied market was also impacted by the pandemic. The outbreak of COVID-19 showed a positive impact on the market, as lockdowns led to the lower availability of doctors in clinical settings.

Thus, patients were more inclined to use apps to manage their chronic conditions, such as diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic diseases. Moreover, there have been a large number of patient care apps, which were launched for COVID-19 management. Nationwide lockdowns resulted in providing healthcare services by the hospitals and clinics, which led to the rise in the use of patient-centric healthcare app that aims toward the management of diseases.

For instance, according to a research study by Haridimos Kondylakis et al., published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research December 2020, mobile apps were considered to be a valuable tool for health professionals, citizens, and decision-makers in facing critical challenges imposed by the pandemic such as reducing the burden on hospitals, tracking the symptoms and mental health of individuals, providing access to credible information, and discovering new predictors, leading to the high adoption of mobile health apps across the industry both from providers and consumers.

The major factors driving the market growth include the increased incidence of chronic disorders, such as cancers, diabetes, and rheumatoid arthritis, especially in the geriatric population. The treatment for chronic diseases requires continuous monitoring and evaluation of physiological changes for proper diagnosis and medication.

For instance, according to the research article by M. Kloppenburg et al., published in Osteoarthritis and Cartilage Journal 2020, globally, osteoarthritis is a highly prevalent rheumatic musculoskeletal disorder that affected around 303 million people in 2017. It can affect any joint but preferentially affects the hands, knee, hip, and spine. Osteoarthritis has a considerable impact on the individual patient, resulting in pain and disability, and on society which is expected to boost the market in the near future.​

According to the United Nations World Population Prospects 2019 report, people over 65 years of age increase from 9% in 2019 to more than 16% of the total world’s population by 2050. Thus, the growing elderly population, rise in government initiatives to maintain electronic health record systems, and increased demand for technology-based treatment to avoid medication errors are likely to drive the patient-centric healthcare app (PCHA) market over the forecast period.

Scope of the Report

As per the scope of the report, patient-centric health care apps are applications that run on various technological devices and help patients regarding their health condition and physicians in delivering the services on their premises. These apps help provide easier access to health information, such as series of cardiac events, dehydration levels in the body, the number of calories consumed, and other medical insights that improve quality of life. The global patient-centric health care app market is segmented by mode of operation (phone-based, web-based, and hybrid patient-centric apps), application (wellness management, disease and treatment management, and other applications), and geography (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle-East and Africa, and South America). The report offers the value (in USD million) for the above-mentioned segments.

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Key Market Trends

The Phone-based Apps Sub-segment is Expected to Hold Significant Market Share in the Patient-centric Healthcare App Market

The phone-based apps are expected to account for the largest revenue share in the overall patient-centric healthcare app market over the forecast period.

During the COVID-19 pandemic 2020, the maintenance of healthcare, well-being, and social connection was crucial for the elderly population. Many mobile health apps were launched after countries relaxed their telehealth regulations to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Mobile health apps helped patients regarding their health condition and physicians in delivering the services on their premises.

For instance, in January 2021, in India, Dell Technologies, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Tata Trusts, developed a mobile application to manage non-communicable diseases at the government primary health centers (PHCs) across the country.

The major factors driving the segment growth include a rise in healthcare awareness, enhanced interoperability, remote access to data, and a relatively reduced time of treatment. The reduced IT burden in hospitals and huge investments in the phone-based apps specific to treatment by market players, such as Pfizer Inc. and Novartis AG, are likely to drive the segment over the forecast period.

According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) facts and figures, approximately 463 million adults (20-79 years) had diabetes in 2019. This number is expected to increase to 700 million by 2045. The proportion of people with type 2 diabetes is increasing in most countries. Moreover, 79% of adults with diabetes were in low- and middle-income countries.

The market players adopting various strategies, such as product launches, collaborations, mergers, and acquisitions, to increase their market shares. For instance, in April 2018, Novartis AG launched FocalView app, a first-of-its-kind app designed to modernize ophthalmic clinical trials. The phone-based app provides an opportunity for patients to participate in ophthalmology clinical trials from home, allowing more sensitive trial endpoints and accurate patient-reported outcomes with enhanced access and flexibility. Thus, the above-mentioned factors are expected to drive market growth over the forecast period.

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