Telemedicine in the senior market
The elderly are widely known as mild technophobes. The Internet circulates with memes such as “I asked my son for a newspaper and he gave me an iPad … he’s a dead fly.” But it turns out that when it comes to their medical needs, at least, older people aren’t just comfortable with technology, they demand it.
A recent Accenture survey tells the story in a few simple numbers:
• 91% of Medicare beneficiaries use email on a daily basis.
• 73% look for answers to their problems on the Internet before turning to other sources.
• 56% have logged into the website of their specific insurance company in the last year.
• 31% log into Facebook or another social networking site at least once a day.
But that’s just general internet usage. The numbers become much more focused when seniors are asked about the purpose of their digital tools when it comes to healthcare:
• Every day, more seniors search the Internet for health answers than those between the ages of 18 and 29. old.
• 67% of Americans 65 and older said that being able to access their medical information online was “something important” or “very important.”
• 62% said the same about being able to schedule appointments with their provider (s) online.
• 83% said they should be able to access their medical records online, but only 28% actually can.
• 46% described accessing their medical records from their mobile device as “the most important” of several options offered.
• 42% said the same thing about “being able to see a doctor virtually, with no copayment.”
The telemedicine market is growing rapidly
If you’re not exactly sure that talking about Facebook and email is directly relevant to the telemedicine market, read those last few points again. Wide access to medical information, exchange between providers, virtual visits … these are the bread and butter of the field of telemedicine. It’s no wonder then that a recent Deloitte study found that more than 70% of employers plan to offer their employees telemedicine consultations by 2017.
That same study calculated that there were more than 74 million virtual visits in 2014, and estimated that the number would approach 300 million in three years. Mercom Capital Group research estimated a 300% increase in funding for video telemedicine over the past 18 months.
The senior sector is also growing
According to US Census Bureau estimates, the 65+ section of the population currently rests at around 15%, but will expand to 20% by 2030. That’s an increase of more than 20 million old people. Today’s question is not “is telemedicine a technology that we must adopt to help our elderly?” – is “will telemedicine evolve fast enough to meet the demands of a rapidly growing and intelligent population?” With the investments we are making today, the answer is a hopeful “yes”, but as with all technology, each development brings new potential and each potential brings new demand. We’ll see if we can keep up with the ‘silver surfers’ as they push us toward ever-increasing telemedical skills.