Opportunities of Globalization and New Business Model for Mobile Technology in Healtcare

Introduction

Despite the tremendous advances in medial research and technology there are still a number of factors like social and geographical barriers that prevent the exploitation of full potential in various health care industries and segments.

For example in tracking and stopping disease outbreaks we still heavily relies on epidemiologists painstakingly back tracking patients to identify the source of an outbreak. Just like Dr. Snow in 19th century London who for his work is seen as the "faster of epidemiology".

Health Statistics (OECD, 2013) shows that the annual average growth rate per capita for health expenditures continue to grow steadily. People started to care about their health more than before and also for the next generation.

Healthcare practitioners, for better judgment, have to rely on medical devices to capture more data, wireless communication technology allows data to be transmitted through network between different end users across the globe. What will be the business opportunities when mobile technology meets healthcare? We attempt to go through the four sub-sectors of mHealth industry and mainly focus on the impact on business model.

M Health (source: http://mhealthwatch.com/infographic-mobile-healthcare-faces-the-future-19218/)



The Opportunities of Globalization

PublicHealth

Infectious disease tracking is essential for the outbreak to be contained. Public health authorities and WHO are responsible for tracking diseases. Therefore, even though it is not an industry in itself, it is vital to the public.    

Public health (source:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oy1CAMObRzc)

With the increase in mobility, outbreaks are no longer confined to a city and its neighborhood (like in the 19th century). Within 24 hours any infected patient can fly to any place in the world. As more and more people are carrying smartphones it is possible to trace their movements, where they have been, who they have contact with very easily. This speeds up the process of epidemiological tracking considerably, stopping the wider spreading of diseases and potentially     saves lives. Mobile technology can also help doctors treating infected patients by capturing information about the status, treatment, etc. and immediately shared it with experts that might be thousands of kilometers away that are helping in coordinating an effective response (WHO n.d.).

MedicalEquipment

Medical Devices (source:http://www.bizreinvention.com/2013/05/24/

doctors-in-your-palm-will-mobile-health-care-help-reduce-medical-bills/)

Medical equipment is designed to aid in the diagnosis, monitoring or treatment of medical conditions. Globalization has greatly increased the demand for medical technology. The globalization of design, sourcing, manufacturing, distribution, and sales of medical technology has accelerated the transformation of the Med-Tech industry; the emergence of new economies as key marketplaces for the sale of medical devices has forced executives to pause as they consider how to serve these markets as well as the developed economies that have long been the principal revenue drivers for their companies. Moreover, these concerns are emerging just as the industry’s business model shifts from “selling products” to “providing integrated solutions” that improve care and enhance health across population.



MedicalNetwork

Net Work (source: http://acolyst.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/)

A mobile phone in the hands of an individual is an extension of the wireless communication network. Companies within the sector put emphasis on (in general) maximizing the efficiency and effectiveness of healthcare organization. Specifically, the links between healthcare practitioners and patients and caregivers are enhanced. Not many of the companies within the sector who would like to go global can benefit from globalization. The provision of service is limited by infrastructure maturity of regions. It is also limited by regulations on data privacy protection. Therefore, social network service providers operate principally within North America. However, companies can locate their research center to places where qualified personnel are available and the costs cheaper.

MedicalResearch





 Research Data (source: http://pathfindersoftware.com/medical/)

Medical research needs tremendous amount information to study and the medical research are very often bounded by the geography. The traditional way of gathering volunteer and data is defined as time-consuming, high cost and limited information, while mobile medical research overcomes these shortages with real-time, digital, high-frequency data support. Under globalization, with easy access and contribution for the study, researchers could get frequent data from worldwide in high diversity and large population, which help to lead to more accurate results. While there are some challenges as well. The regulations vary from region to region, the data input precision are different. Private information protection is also an important determinant of the success under globalization

New Business Models

In a globalized world, new cooperation model between the various nations, new ways to define and fund technological standards to be able to compare and share mobile data need to be defined, agreed and implemented. Such standards would have to then flow into the manufacturing process of any mobile services to be able to gather and analyze the data.

Co-work   (source:https: //organizationsandmarkets.com

/2014/01/29/the-soft-underbelly-of-business-model-innovation/)

Capitalizing on newly emerged technologies, the business models of healthcare research, healthcare social network, and medical devices/supplies have brought us changes in the way revenues are generated. Generally speaking, companies have increased customer base, expanded channels/platforms, enhanced efficiency and decreased costs. Due to changes brought about by technology, markets become highly segmented, companies within the sector can better assess and predict the needs of customers. As a result, companies can serve customers better.

List of References

Medical Technology Industry Faces a Balancing Act in Globalization, By Manufacturing Geek on November 29, 2012 http://manufacturing-geek.com/medical-devices/2012/11/medical-technology-industry-faces-balancing-act-globalization/

Athena Health company website http://www.athenahealth.com/ retrieved on 19th of April, 2015.

Mechael, Patricia; Kwan, Ada; and Kern, Dayle. Chapter 9: Mobile Health. in Global Mobile: Applications and Innovations for Worldwide Mobile Ecosystem. by Bruck, Peter A. & Rao, M. (eds.) New Jersey: USA, Information Today, Inc.

Motion Computing company website https://www.motioncomputing.com/ retrieved on 19th of April, 2015.

CDC (n. d.). 2014 Ebola Outbreak in West Africa. Retrieved on 23 April 2015 from http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/outbreaks/2014-west-africa/

Rojahn, S. J. (2012). Pakistan Uses Smartphone Data to Head Off Dengue Outbreak. Retrieved on 22 April 2015 from http://www.technologyreview.com/news/506276/pakistan-uses-smartphone-data-to-head-off-dengue-outbreak/

WHO (n. d.). Global Alert and Response (GAR). Retrieved on 22 April 2015 from http://www.who.int/csr/en/

Wikipedia (n. d.), Timeline of the SARS outbreak, Retrieved 23 April 2015 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_SARS_outbreak

Willingham, E. & Helft, L. (2014). Tracking Disease Outbreaks. Retrieved on 22 April 2015 from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/disease-outbreaks.html