The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a surge in the use of remote patient monitoring (RPM) tools to monitor patients outside the standard healthcare settings.

Verdict has conducted a poll to assess which of the life sciences industry trends will benefit the most from RPM tools.

A majority 32% of the respondents opined that telemedicine would benefit the most from remote patient monitoring tools, followed by decentralised or virtual clinical trials as voted by 17% of the respondents.

Digital therapeutics, electronic healthcare records, and wearables are expected to benefit the most, according to 13% of the respondents each.

Data-backed mechanism such as real-world evidence would benefit the most, according to 12% of the respondents.

The analysis is based on 185 responses received from the readers of Pharmaceutical Technology, a Verdict network site, between 01 December 2020 and 12 January 2021.

Remote patient monitoring (RPM) tools during COVID-19

Lockdowns and travel restrictions imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic have altered the way patients are being monitored in clinical settings. Elderly people and those suffering from chronic conditions require constant monitoring and care, but the restrictions posed by the pandemic have led them to become dependent on virtual or telehealth consultations with physicians.

The RPM market is expected to benefit from the shift and with the increase in aging population, according to GlobalData, which forecasts the global market value of RPM to grow by 18% to surpass $645m by 2025.

RPM is also expected to improve the management of health conditions of patients, while saving time and money, adds GlobalData. Connected devices and remote monitoring tools such as wearable devices are further contributing to RPM, especially in conducting clinical trials and monitoring various physiological parameters.