More patients see the benefits in personalised care devices and want to use remote health monitoring wearables

Managing a chronic condition is challenging. Nearly two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, the mSafety team at Sony Network Communications Europe set out to better understand these challenges after an initial study at the beginning of the pandemic. The survey targeted over 2,000 people in the United States with a chronic condition.

Compared to 2020, more participants have experienced remote care, see the benefits in personalised care devices and want to use remote health monitoring devices.

The many challenges of managing a chronic condition

Unsurprisingly, it is still difficult to manage a chronic illness. Many patients fall short in the management of their condition. To understand the pitfalls, the survey asked participants about their biggest challenges. Several day-to-day challenges scored particularly high. In fact, affordability was only the second most cited challenge of managing a chronic illness, even in the United States.

Remote care – the new normal?

The pandemic made everything more challenging, particularly for people managing chronic conditions. Visiting the doctor required extra precaution and in some cases was not possible at all. As a result, over half the participants had at least one telehealth visit during the pandemic. It also seems that a large majority now see the long-term benefit of remote care. How many participants do you imagine wanted to physically visit their doctor’s office less often if they could share health data digitally?

Prescription of devices during the pandemic

Along with more experience with remote care, participants also had more experience with remote monitoring devices. In our 2020 survey, 20% of participants had been prescribed a remote health monitoring device. In 2022, the number is 26%. While this is a positive development, there is still clearly plenty of untapped potential.

Direct and personalised care on the rise

The survey revealed to us that there is more consensus about the potential of remote health monitoring. A remote health monitoring device seems to be a growing preference, indicated by multiple metrics. For one, 60% of participants felt they would be somewhat willing to switch doctors if their doctor did not provide them with a device designed to help them manage their chronic condition.

For the full 2022 survey results, sign up and download the survey report. In the report you will also find comparisons to the 2020 survey as well as insights on the trends – useful to any service provider looking to understand the growth of health technologies and improve their level of proactive care.

Find out more about mSafety

The study was conducted on behalf of the mSafety team at Sony Network Communications Europe, in partnership with independent market research firm PureSpectrum, analysing data from a survey in February 2022 of 2,030 participants with chronic conditions living in the U.S.