IoT in healthcare: challenges
We are at a crossroads for connected medical devices.
IoT healthcare solutions have the potential to dramatically improve patient outcomes and save millions of lives – all while meeting the challenge of rising healthcare costs and an ageing population.
However, 82% of healthcare organisations that have so far deployed medical IoT devices have experienced cyberattacks against those products - putting patient data at risk and undermining confidence in the sector.
The Internet of Medical Things worth $543B in 2025
Companies that can provide safe, secure and reliable IoT medical devices will reap the rewards, while those that fail to do so will miss out on a market, also known as the Internet of Medical Things or IoMT, that is expected to grow at a CAGR of 19.9% by 2025.
$543 billion
The expected size of the medical IoT devices market in 2025
$63 billion
Expected global healthcare savings due to the deployment of medical IoT by 2022
However
less than half of doctors (49%) believe that IoT medical devices are reliable.
4 key features that IoT medical devices must include
To meet the needs of medical professionals, patients, and hospital purchasing departments, your devices will need to demonstrate:
- Reliable connectivity
Devices that record and send critical data must be trusted to stay connected for extended periods.
- Compliance with privacy and security regulation
Your devices must comply with privacy and security regulations such as IEC 62304, ISO 13485:2016, MDR 2017/745/EC, GDPR, and FDA standards.
- Long-lasting
Devices must be future-proofed by being designed to allow remote software or security updates that provide optimal performance over extended periods.
- Ease of use
For your device to be adopted, it must be easy for patients and doctors to connect and run with minimal intervention or set up.
Thales' 24/7 cellular connectivity solutions, advanced security expertise, and device lifecycle management platform offer a comprehensive solution that helps you meet your customers' needs.
Learn how Thales helps differentiate your connected medical devices:
Applications supported by Thales
Our IoT connectivity and security solutions work seamlessly with a wide array of medical devices.
Contact us to find out how we can connect and secure the following kinds of devices and applications:
- Chronic care management
- Assisted living
- Wearables and fitness trackers
- Remote treatment solutions
- Confidential health data hubs
- Sleep Therapy devices (Sleep Apnea)
- Blood glucose and diabetes monitors
- Asthma inhalers
- Blood pressure meters
- Cardiac rhythm monitors
- And many more
Thales solutions for IoT in healthcare
SECURE your healthcare application
Medical IoT devices transmit some of the most sensitive personal information of patients. It must stay confidential on the device, while in transit and should only be visible by the patient's doctor and treatment team. Thales provides:
- World-class ID for each of your devices and encryption-based digital signature schemes for messages sent from a device. This avoids cloning or access from illegitimate sources.
- We encrypt data on all devices, as well as in transit via external platforms.
- Security updates and access credentials are managed remotely by legitimate actors.
CONNECT your healthcare application
When it comes to transmitting medical data, reliable and consistent connections are crucial. At Thales, we firmly believe the cellular transmission is a superior solution to WiFi for sending medical data - especially with the emergence of LTE-M and NB-IoT. These technologies connect your devices anywhere, even underground. These technologies are ideal for power-sensitive, long-life IoT applications that don't need high data bandwidth and often run on battery.
Thales also offers a remote SIM provisioning capability, which gives you the flexibility to design devices that can be used anywhere in the world. By embedding an eUICC (sometimes called eSIM) in our technology, any mobile network operator profile can be easily downloaded once devices are deployed in the country of use.
- For wearables and any device which transmits data while the patient is on the move, cellular is the perfect fit.
- Cellular modules are 'plug and play'. The patient is not required to enter lengthy WiFi passwords when at home, at work, or while travelling.
- Battery-powered devices mean the patient is independent of power outlets, and not tied to a specific location.
- eSIM technology and remote SIM provisioning simplify device design and logistics for medical device manufacturers. It also provides flexibility to swap to another operator, when and if needed.
MANAGE your healthcare application
Medical IoT devices are often intended to become long-lasting companions. During their long life of operation, regular updates are essential to keep devices secure and working at optimal performance.
- Patients cannot be expected to bring their medical devices back to the healthcare facility for updates. Thales offers healthcare providers a solution which pushes updates remotely, securely and simultaneously to large fleets of devices
- Medical devices updates can be run in a cost and time-efficient manner, improving TCO
- Healthcare devices' ROI is improved because devices can be used for many years
ANALYSE your healthcare data
Whether you provide IoT devices or run a platform that processes IoT medical data, you need to be able to analyse data being generated by large numbers of healthcare devices. We provide:
- Sophisticated tools for the analysis of connected healthcare devices
- Alerts for unusual activity on device fleets which may indicate that a hacking threat is underway
- APIs to connect with the healthcare professional's dashboard to provide additional data as required.
The Thales advantage for medical IoT
Real-time cellular connectivity
Wherever your device is, wherever patients are, be confident that a continuous stream of data is being collected.
Cybersecurity you can depend on
We bring you decades of experience building cutting edge cybersecurity solutions for industry.
Device lifecycle Management
When your devices are in the field, you can be sure that they will be monitored and maintained securely.