29% of seniors used a telehealth service in Q2 2020, with over 50% doing so for the first time

International research firm Parks Associates launches its seventh annual Connected Health Summit today, a virtual conference that addresses the impact of COVID-19 on the connected health market and current consumer attitudes towards virtual care solutions. The event, which runs September 1-3, will feature industry leaders from healthcare services, insurance companies, hospitals, device makers, and service providers to address emerging opportunities to serve consumers at home with new technology solutions.

The executive conference, sponsored by Alarm.com, athenahealth, Becklar, Nortek Security & Control, Softeq, and Sprosty Network, features presentations from key executives in the connected health space:

• “How COVID changed telehealth and the future of care delivery,” by Tori Ames, MPA, Manager, CincyKids Health Connect, Center for Telehealth, Cincinnati Children’s
• “Explosive Growth in Telehealth,” by Dr. Donna O’Shea, Chief Medical Officer of Population Health Management, UnitedHealthcare
• “Telehomecare in the COVID-19 Era,” by Mark Dunning, President and CEO, Care Planning Institute, and Gene Wang, CEO, People Power
• “Better Together: Extending Healthcare to the Home,” by Richard Culberson, Executive Director, Cox Homelife Strategy & Operations, Cox Communications
• “When everything changed, what stayed the same? Healthcare's evolution in a time of pandemic and humanitarian crisis,” by Angie Kalousek Ebrahimi, Executive Director, Mind-Body Medicine, Blue Shield of California
• “Transforming Healthcare with New Models to Connect Patients, Families and Providers,” by Yuri Quintana, PhD, Chief, Division of Clinical Informatics, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Parks Associates research finds COVID-19 is forcing seniors into new routines with smart home and healthcare technologies, which may result in new willingness to use tech-based solutions. Fifty-four percent of seniors who used a video conferencing solution during COVID-19 did so for the first time. Additionally, use of telehealth services rose five times year-over-year, with 29% of seniors reporting telehealth use in Q2 2020, compared to just 6% in 2019.

“COVID-19 is forcing consumers, smart home companies, and the healthcare industry to try new solutions and forge new partnerships to realize a complete, home-based experience in healthcare delivery,” said Brad Russell, Research Director, Connected Home, Parks Associates. “At Connected Health Summit, we will examine market forces driving a range of new technologies, like virtual health assistants (voice/text/avatars), AI-powered diagnostics and navigation tools, AR and VR experiences, and robotics, and highlight industry perspectives on issues such as the potential impact on health outcomes, efficiency of healthcare delivery, market viability, expected speed of implementation, and important issues to consider when applying emerging technologies.”

Registration is open, and media are invited to attend at no cost. For information on Parks Associates data, please contact Rosey Ulpino, rosey@parksassociates.com, 972.996.0233.

About Connected Health Summit: Consumer Engagement and Innovation

Connected Health Summit: Consumer Engagement and Innovation is a virtual executive conference focused on the impact of connected devices and IoT healthcare solutions on consumers at home.

Connected Health Summit provides insights on new business models, IoT technologies, consumer behaviors, and deployments relevant to consumer healthcare solutions. The conference addresses opportunities for new solutions, including smart home platforms, on-demand services, voice assistants, and wearables, to empower consumers, caregivers, and providers and to meet the growing demand for services in independent living, chronic care management, remote access to care, and wellness and fitness.