Over the last few months Berg Insight has been looking closely at the market for people monitoring services. There are for instance several types of monitoring systems that make it possible for elderly and people with cognitive disabilities to live independently in their homes for as long as possible.
These assistance systems are usually called telecare systems, telecare alarms or social alarms in Europe and Personal Emergency Response Systems (PERS) or medical alert systems in North America. Berg Insight estimates that there were close to 5.0 million telecare alarms in the EU28+2 and about 2.2 million PERS systems in North America at the end of 2015. The penetration among people 65 years and older is typically 3–5 percent in many countries in Western Europe and North America.
“Many insurance and social care programmes now aim to reduce healthcare costs by providing care at home by using technologies such telecare and telehealth systems”, said André Malm, Senior Analyst at Berg Insight.
“Telecare service providers and carers are today showing increasing interest in mobile telecare solutions that are better suited for certain user groups than traditional systems that only work indoors”, said Mr. Malm.
Mobile telecare systems are portable and incorporate cellular connectivity as well as GPS to support the needs of elderly with active lifestyles. Some mobile telecare systems are also designed to assist people suffering from Alzheimer’s and dementia that are prone to wandering, as well as people with autism and epilepsy or other medical conditions such as certain forms of cardiac arrhythmia and diabetes. Several companies are now offering telecare systems in the form of wristwatches or wearables.
“The design of mobile telecare devices is very important since the user should not feel embarrassed by wearing a device that can be perceived as age defining”, concluded Mr. Malm.
Berg Insight forecast that the number of users of mobile telecare systems in Europe and North America will grow from 0.45 million in 2015 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 40 percent to reach nearly 3.4 million in 2021.
The author of this blog is André Malm, Senior Analyst, Berg Insight