Remote monitoring is rapidly growing — and a new class of patient-consumer is driving the shift

A cardiac patient in Carlsbad sends their doctor in San Francisco a readout of their heart rate, courtesy of an Apple Watch. A New Yorker with hypertension texts with an Alabama health coach about data from their smart blood pressure cuffs. A person with diabetes snaps a photo of their dinner and uses an app to predict how it will impact their blood sugar.

Health care is undergoing a monumental shift toward remote patient monitoring — and a new class of patient-consumer is leading the charge, according to a new STAT report. The transformation — which began years ago as healthy people moved to optimize wellness and people with chronic conditions pushed for more convenient care — has taken on a more permanent tone amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Millions of Americans suddenly asked themselves, ‘Can I solve this care need without showing up in person?’” said Sean Duffy, chief executive officer and co-founder of Omada Health, a virtual diabetes care provider. “That consumer expectation change is going to be the thing that writes history the quickest.”

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