Asia’s Rapidly Expanding Home Healthcare Market

Worldwide, the home healthcare market — including devices, services and related products — is valued at more than $215 billion. This homecare market is expected to maintain growth rates of 8% annually through 2020. In Asia, an expanding middle class combined with increasing knowledge of the benefits of homecare has led to an explosion in demand for home based services and products. The Asian homecare device market alone (not including other home health products or services) is projected to reach $15 billion by 2017, an almost eight-fold increase over 2011.

Many countries in Asia have undeveloped healthcare infrastructure. In-hospital healthcare is often prohibitively expensive for many patients, who would often rather convalesce in their own homes. Home healthcare is usually more cost effective than hospital care. Aging Asian populations mean a growing number of patients with chronic illnesses — requiring long-term care and expanded in home medical services. Asian countries also maintain a strong tradition of caring for the elderly in their own home or the house of a relative, further increasing demand for homecare services and products.

Western medical company services and products that have favorable projections for growth in Asia include nursing and retirement care, respiratory therapy, rehabilitation services, telehealth, home infusion therapy, medical disposables and holistic care services. Healthcare IT is increasingly important to address the unmet medical needs of patients in Asian countries. Homecare products that are easy for the patient or caregiver to use and/or that integrate IT will find an especially large market in Asia.

For more information, please see PBM’s recent article on the home healthcare market in Asia.