Home Medical device shortfall

Over ten years ago I wrote about how home medical sensors would become common in the next decade and while that’s become true, there are several shortcomings to how the current sets and suites work. Nobody has yet created the complete home set, a kit of devices that could be prescribed for patients needing long term monitoring for changes in their condition.

This kit would at minimum include the following sensors:

thermometer

pulse-oximeter w/ respiration rate sensors

blood pressure cuff with arrhythmia sensors

weight scale

blood sugar monitor

The kit should be able to record the results by time and date locally, and also store them and share them via the internet. Right now most device and app makers tend to cater to fitness rather than maintaining wellness, something that leaves seniors in the lurch. The data gathered would be invaluable for doctors monitoring their patients for changes, and when anonymized and bulked would provide really great statistics for use by health professionals world wide.

Someone could be making money, but so far none have risen to this challenge. So instead seniors are stuck using a drawer full of devices that do not interoperate, and separate apps that do not play well together – and when you want to share with a doctor you better get out the pencil and pad.