Telehealth and telecare a recession-beating market?

Last week was a quiet one for telecare news. One assumes people’s attention was more on the general woes of the economy. However, despite all the difficulties telehealth and telecare suppliers seem to experience in actually making sales, it seems that business analysts’ optimism for the sector (particularly in the US), is strong to the point of expecting it to run counter to general recessionary trends.

I have noticed a few small snippets to this effect lately – none big enough to be worth posting individually here – but this item (Keeping Your Own Health Chart, Online) in the business section of the New York Times is worth reading. It mentions the forthcoming launch of Zume Life’s Zuri in the context of Google and Microsoft’s and other large companies’ interest in the field of ehealth. “…people will use the new sites being developed by Google, Microsoft and others as they now use online tools to manage their finances, travel and shopping” David Lansky, CEO of Pacific Business Group on Health is quoted as saying.

See also the other post today, Dossia to help drive consumer-initiated change.

Finally, read this item (and its comments) by Thomas H. Lee, Network President for Partners HealthCare System in Boston: The Financial Meltdown: Implications for Connected Health