the e-health market | France

1.1 Presentation and scope of the study

According to the World Health Organization, the term e-health refers to "the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) for health". This definition includes a first major domain called Health Information System (HIS) or Hospital Information System (HIS), encompassing all the solutions of information exchange between hospitals, doctors and patients such as the computerized medical record or the health card system. E-health also encompasses other areas:

• Telemedicine: it includes different medical acts performed at a distance;
• Telehealth: it mainly concerns monitoring and prevention;
• Technological devices for patients or m-health (mobile applications, connected objects, etc.);
• Technological devices for public and industrial players.

The global e-health market is growing. The total amount of funds raised by start-ups in the world is growing relatively steadily.

Also, the number of patients using telemedicine is increasing worldwide; this is a very promising segment within telehealth. The practice of telemedicine is also stimulated by the development of connected objects and m-health via smartphone applications for example, measuring physiological and physical data that can be analyzed for future medical treatments.

In the French market, the health sector is directly linked to public investments. The Ministry of Health has announced a development plan dedicated to e-health, proving that the sector represents a real growth driver, but also a way to modernize the various treatments for patients. We should also mention the Shared Medical File (digital health record) and the generalization of teleconsultations.

In addition, many startups are investing in the French market. This market shows signs of future growth, given the aging population and the increase in the number of chronic diseases. A large proportion of the population also suffers from long-term conditions such as diabetes. However, the market remains immature and fragmented around several relatively small players

The current boom in telemedicine, telehealth and especially m-health reflects a real revolution in the healthcare field, marked by the transformation of medical practices, relationships between market players (such as healthcare professionals), etc.