Recent news segments have spotlighted some of the more interesting developments in healthtech, including news on wearable tech, cybersecurity, the needs of an aging population, femtech growth, and more.
In The News
Wearables
The American Heart Association (AHA) did a deep dive into wearable technology/mobile apps and found they may decrease a patient’s cardiovascular risk factors. The future of wearable tech remains to be seen, but studies like this show that physicians can incorporate wearable tech data in their patient management and treatment plans with encouraging results.
Cybersecurity
Cybersecurity experts have never been busier. Forget Change Healthcare, St. Louis-based Ascension Health has been reeling from a cyberattack that has affected each one of its 140 hospitals. The resulting chaos put the giant health system back into the dark ages, making it difficult to obtain and record patient information, place orders, and obtain test results, all leading to delayed patient care and a nightmarish workplace scenario that you shouldn’t wish on your worst enemies. (Update, EMR is up and running again!)
A recent JAMA article describes how cyber attacks don’t just affect the targeted hospitals; nearby Emergency Departments become catchment centers for re-routed patients, overwhelming staffing and resources.
HealthTech Growth
Aging in place is the term for our older population that prefers to grow old at home (versus nursing homes or retirement facilities). This means that healthcare must evolve to meet the likely patients’ health demands arising from this trend. HealthTech solutions, such as at-home monitoring and telehealth, will likely be key players in this area. It’s also worth considering technology and products to assist caregivers.
Femtech growth has continued, and more money is entering the arena, with the global femtech market now valued at several billion dollars. Most recently, Materna Medical, focused on pelvic floor treatments, received funding for an FDA-approved product that will be sold over the counter. However, despite recent progress, several key areas of women’s health, including menopause and maternal health, are lagging in funding and interest.
Historically underfunded women’s health research is also gaining ground. The most recent example is the $11+M research facility at The University of Kansas that intends to study big data with a focus on women’s health and innovation. More research funding increases the likelihood of new treatments, innovative technologies, and advancements in care for women across all health and age parameters.
[A list of VCs that invest in femtech & women’s health can be found here.]
Retail Therapy Doesn’t Always Work
Working in healthcare isn’t easy. Walmart was the first retail giant to realize this and made a swift exit. This quarter also saw the dissolution of Dollar General’s partnership with DocGo and their mobile health clinics. Other wavering partnerships:
- Walgreens and VillageMD are shutting down 160 primary care clinics, with a reported $6B in lost net revenue (Q2 2024).
- CVS needs help with Oak Street Health and is seeking private equity assistance.
To state the obvious, healthcare is expensive, patients are not assembly line parts that you can quickly fix, there are not enough people to fill staffing needs, and insurance doesn’t like opening its pocketbook. Welcome to medical care in the U.S. Fixing our issues requires more than large retailers inserting clinics all over the country.
Stats
- $70 Billion is the estimated global market for wearable devices by 2028.
- 0.1% of the population will become centenarians in the next 30 years.
- +60% growth in market value of EHRs projected from 2020 to 2027.
Sanjana Vig MD, MBA
Dr. Vig is a co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Langar Holdings. She is a board-certified anesthesiologist specializing in Perioperative Management. She is also the founder The Female Professional, a website geared toward empowering professional women in life and their careers.
