Patient Monitoring Technologies Embraced by BRIC Countries

Tuesday 11 June 2013, Amsterdam

Investments in healthcare infrastructure within BRIC countries are expected to play a significant role in the future growth of the patient monitoring devices market, as medical facilities aspire to achieve Western standards of care, states new research.

The new report states that during the last decade, various developing countries have exploded into the global healthcare market, as a result of huge population numbers and fast-emerging wealth. Patient monitoring technologies are witnessing a soaring trade as a result of such healthcare system overhauls, and some manufacturing companies are working hard to cash in on this new market.

Until recently, India had very low national healthcare expenditure, but private sector investments have been increasing in the country and improving medical facilities. Large-scale investment by corporate groups in underserved cities has increased the number of hospitals, clinics and diagnostic centers, with major hospital groups such as Fortis Healthcare and Apollo Hospitals announcing expansion plans in India. The addition of new medical facilities provides significant opportunities for growth in the patient monitoring devices market in India, which is expected to grow from a value of $85m in 2012 to $134m in 2019, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 7%.

Similarly, China’s central government has recently pushed to improve healthcare services, investing $70 billion over the last few years in the construction of hospitals and clinics in regions with inadequate healthcare access. This allows more patients to be seen, therefore increasing the opportunities for patient monitoring devices to be utilized. The 12th Five Year Plan (2011–2015) promises to invest significantly to further expand medical services in China, suggesting that this trend will only continue. We therefore predicts that the patient monitoring devices market in China will grow from $445m in 2012 to $714 m in 2019, at a CAGR of 7%.

The global patient monitoring devices market was lead by Philips Healthcare and GE Healthcare in 2011, with respective shares of 23% and 13%. Other key players in the patient monitoring market are Mindray Medical International Limited, Draegerwerk AG & Co. KGaA, and Nihon Kohden Corporation. Philips Healthcare’s dominant market presence stems from their extensive international presence, with acquisitions of Meditronics in India, Shenzhen Goldway in China and Dixtal Biomedica e Tecnologia (Dixtal) in Brazil, building on the company’s product portfolio and strengthening its position in the emerging countries.