Global Telehealth Services Market Size and Trends
The global telehealth services market was valued at US$ 12.47 Bn in 2023 and is expected to reach US$ 26.64 Bn by 2031, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.2% from 2024 to 2031.
Global Telehealth Services Market- Trends
- Adoption of telehealth apps and solutions: The adoption of telehealth apps and solutions has significantly influenced the global telehealth services market in recent times. With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, telehealth emerged as a useful tool to enable virtual healthcare access while maintaining social distancing. This spurred rapid growth in demand for telehealth services as patients sought virtual medical consultations and remote patient monitoring solutions from the safety of their homes. According to data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the use of telehealth services increased by 154% between 2019 to 2020. Studies also found that 9 in 10 health care facilities supported clinical care delivery through telehealth in 2021 as compared to just 1 in 5 before the pandemic. This clearly shows patients embraced telehealth out of necessity to access non-emergency care without risking exposure to the virus in person. It also exposed more people to the benefits and convenience of virtual care.
- Cloud-based telehealth services: The trend of cloud-based telehealth services is having a significant impact on the global telehealth services market. As healthcare moves increasingly to virtual and remote care, the ability to access services through an internet connection from anywhere is becoming paramount. Cloud platforms allow telehealth providers to offer consultation, virtual visits, remote patient monitoring, and other services to patients using only a smartphone, tablet or computer. This ubiquitous access is driving greater adoption of telehealth overall as patients face fewer geographical barriers to receiving care. Cloud infrastructure also enables telehealth providers to rapidly scale up their services as demand increases. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-2021, telehealth saw unprecedented growth as in-person visits moved online. Cloud platforms allowed providers to onboard new patients and users quickly to meet surges in need without extensive new IT investments. For example, the U.S. Veterans Health Administration saw a 1200% increase in telehealth visits during the first month of the pandemic using its existing cloud-based telehealth system. This flexibility and scalability is vital during health crises and will continue spurring telehealth's expanded role.
- Rising popularity of tele-robotic and remote surgery: The rising popularity of tele-robotic and remote surgery is significantly influencing the global telehealth services market. With technological advancements, robotic systems are now capable of enabling complex surgical procedures to be performed remotely by doctors. This allows surgeons to operate on patients from any location using robotic arms, cameras and instruments that mimic their movements in real-time. More hospitals and healthcare facilities across the world are now investing in such robotic-assisted surgery technologies. For example, the University of Alabama Hospital in Birmingham performed its first remote surgery in 2021 using the da Vinci surgical system. In this procedure, the attending surgeon operated the robot from a different facility 30 miles away while the patient underwent hysterectomy surgery. Such examples demonstrate the capability of tele-robotic surgery in improving access to quality healthcare for patients in remote locations. The patient is spared from travel while benefitting from the expertise of surgeons without geographic limitations. This widespread adoption of remote surgery tools is driving more healthcare providers to offer telehealth services to expand their reach.