As such, over the past 18 months telemedicine grew at a level that otherwise would have taken it 10 years to achieve, becoming an impressive breakthrough that has positively impacted the lives of patients and doctors. However, there are still significant challenges directly related to technological access and, above all, connectivity, which are crucial to make this service universal. In Mexico, while it’s true that telemedicine service is driven not just by the government (via the Health Secretariat) but also by the National Center for Technological Excellence in Health (or CENETEC, as per its Spanish-language acronym), overall, telemedicine is still taking its first steps in the country. The keys to telemedicine working effectively are data accessibility and the ability to offer quality service regardless of where the doctor and patient are located.

This involves having a very robust IT system and security features that will protect the data of the patient, the doctor and the institution, i.e., the clinic or hospital, yet still allow for the retrieval of necessary information when appointments and follow-up treatments take place. When it comes to managing medical histories of patients, data access should be provided in a comprehensive way to make it easy for both the doctor and the patient to access the information.

The use of electronic prescriptions, which is still not very well developed in Mexico and offers great potential, is another of the advances that have been spreading across Latin America. The use of digital support for these types of documents, given their legal importance, is exponentially speeding up the connections between pharmacies and doctors, which in turn provides the patient with a fast solution that takes only minutes. This is particularly important in cases in which the participants (doctors and patients) are located in different areas.

Given that Mexico is a large country with a big population and limited professional resources, IT infrastructure offers a beneficial opportunity and, along with telemedicine, can deliver a solution for the lack of available treatment in different areas around the country. While primary care has grown, there has also been an increase of more than 8% in the use of short-stay beds—and huge jump considering that historically, short-stay bed use has only grown by 1-2% per year. This phenomenon is a clear lesson—courtesy of COVID-19—with regard the medical interaction between patients and the institutions.

During the peak infection periods of the pandemic, patients in Mexico decided to reduce doctor visits, partially out of fear and partially due to recommendations by health authorities. This has led them to have a different relationship with healthcare and treat the highly urgent matters in the moment they need to be treated. Today, healthcare and timely diagnoses are driving a reduction in the misuse of beds for elective procedures, allowing more space for necessary procedures. In addition, there has also been an increase in robotic surgery for minimally invasive surgeries, which considerably reduce recovery time for patients and, in turn, shorten their hospital/clinic stays.

The effects of the pandemic have been devastating economically, educationally, politically and emotionally. We have had to reinvent ourselves and work around adversity to come out ahead. Latin American countries have been among the hardest hit in the world by COVID and we still have much work to do in order to fully recover. However, we’ve learned important lessons that have forged the way for implementing technology in places where it would have been unthinkable a few months back. Healthcare and education were the sectors that were most transformed by the effects of the pandemic, and we should treat this transformation as the tip of the iceberg. Moreover, healthcare in particular is a topic that is being discussed in several international forums, such as the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO); last month Carissa F. Etienne, the PAHO’s director, brought to light the urgency of the need to invest in strengthening healthcare systems and in the production of healthcare technologies. Etienne emphasized LAC’s need to become self-sufficient in this area.

We’re now at a tipping point that requires active participation from all the involved healthcare stakeholders to drive development in the region. There is a new way of doing things that is here to stay and it’s necessary for business to organically complement these new ways of doing things by educating professionals, offering universe access to basic healthcare services and, above all, by investing in technology.

That is why we at Global Health Intelligence continually drive the development and implementation of new technologies through our communications channels, which we use to share reports and points of view regarding the technological transformation that is emerging throughout the region. We also strive to work with companies that invest in cutting-edge technology that connect data with the stakeholders that make decisions in Latin America’s healthcare market. Since 2014 our commitment has allowed us to establish different partnerships with key players to generate valuable information to help with decision making.

• PET scanners
• Linear accelerators
• Lithiotripter machines
• Gamma cameras
  

According to GHI analysis, only 5% of the hospitals in the region possess these equipment types.

But beyond identifying this 5%, the webinar — entitled The Adoption and Penetration of High-Tech Equipment in Latin America — exhaustively examined the factors that lead hospitals to acquire high-tech equipment.

Most importantly, the webinar features GHI’s TechTier Adoption Model. Based on statistical analysis of hospital ownership and acquisition of more than 40 types of equipment, ranging from basic (such as infusion pumps or newborn cribs) to cutting-edge, expensive equipment and devices, TechTier reveals the stages that hospitals go through as they advance from providing basic, essential care to higher degrees of specialization and more innovative treatments for medical conditions. For medical equipment manufacturers, the TechTier model and a new service developed by GHI can make the difference between increasing your sales success with high-level equipment — or still struggling to find clients and close.

Step Up Your Sales  

Contact GHI today to see how this statistical modeling and data-driven approach can deliver you a fresh new batch of sales targets for your high-tech equipment that may well surprise you. While your sales team may have great experience and contact, our analysis of data that comes straight from the hospitals themselves may help you expand your CRM (and sales pipeline) to a new level.

To explore more of what GHI shared in the webinar, please click here to download the presentation slides and scroll down to view the webinar recording in its entirety.

The test, of European origin, classifies patients diagnosed in early non-metastatic stages into two risk groups. Patients in the low-risk group very likely would not to require chemotherapy. In Mexico, 55% of all breast cancer patients in the early stages do not need chemotherapy, but, 95% of them are treated with chemotherapy. This test would help to avoid “unnecessary toxicity”, as well as the contraindications and side-effects of both chemotherapy and drugs. The public health sector can significantly reduce its costs with this test, in addition to being sure to give the treatment that the patient needs. It is normal for patients who react badly to chemotherapy to be hospitalized to treat other types of discomfort from treatment. Of the cancer cases diagnosed in the country, 20% (190,000) correspond to breast, a disease that is covered by the Mexican health system. This is the first time that the public health system has introduced a genomic test into its diagnostic table. This decision was taken by the General Health Council from WHO estimates, according to which 1 in 3 Mexicans will have a diagnosis of cancer throughout their life. The private insurance sector in Mexico has had this test since 2009, which has generated savings of approximately USD23 million.

Elsiglodetorreon

The BD Kiestra InoqulA equipment has enabled continuous processing and given the opportunity to bring “Telebacteriology” through high-resolution automated imaging to facilitate remote diagnosis.

The INCAN stated that bacteria evolve daily, and can get to the point of not being controlled. Safety and promptness in bacterial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility studies are essential in the management of patients with infectious diseases, and rapid timely diagnosis and treatment reduce not only morbidity but also the spread of infection. The equipment installed in the clinical laboratory of the microbiology area could contribute to decrease the days of hospitalization of patients and thereby reduce costs associated with the complications suffered by patients.

According to studies by the World Health Organization (WHO), infectious diseases are the second cause of death – just below cardiovascular diseases – because infectious agents cause more than 25% of deaths each year. In a statement, the institute adds that, in 2014 alone, in Mexico there were more than 39 million cases of respiratory, gastrointestinal, urinary tract and periodontal infections, among others. Becton Dickinson’s in Latin America, stated that the type of automation that these diagnostic systems allows doctors to respond more quickly and improve the quality of results.

20minutos

Chronic allergy can last up to three months and in many cases, is recurrent despite the treatments that the patient has undergone. The INER observed that prevalence of allergies in Latin America particularly in Mexico is similar to the numbers reported in highly industrialized countries.

For some types of allergies, the numbers in Mexico is slightly above the global average. According to research in Ciudad Victoria, Tijuana, Mexicali and Monterrey, rhinitis affects 27% of the children between six to seven years and 43% of adolescents aged 13-14years. The category of antihistamines to treat allergies in Mexico reports sales of USD42.2 million and three million units each year.

Unimexicali

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An example of this is the antiretroviral Kaletra, for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which Abbot sells in Mexico at a price of USD2.96 per pill, which amounts to more than USD2,100 annually.

World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that about 700,000 people die in Latin America every year due to lack of access to medicines. Families in the region spend an average of 30% of their income on health issues. The AHF emphasized on promoting early detection of the disease to curb HIV epidemic.

Currently, only 60% of HIV positive people in Mexico are aware of the available treatments. Government can provide treatment only if the authorities can buy generic medicines at more affordable prices. The organization urged the Mexican government to take advantage of the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

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Additionally, pharmaceuticals prefer to extend their patents on medicines to generate profits at the expense human life. It was suggested by the AHF that patient organizations be included in meetings where governments and pharmaceutical companies discuss reductions in drug prices.

Noreste

286 electronic tablets will also be distributed for capturing data. The system will allow to generate accurate statistics on the health of the population such as the incidence and prevalence of chronic disorders including diabetes or hypertension or prostrate.

Through the program professionals of “El Médico en Tu Casa” have visited 2.7 million homes.

Telmex guarantees the highest security standards and confidentiality of patients’ personal data. The foundation will enable technology transfer, assembly of information systems, and training and organization of the work teams in the Ministry of Health.

Through the Hospital Administration and Medical Information System (SAMIH), Mexico City aims to become the first Latin American district to implement the ECE in its entire network of public health services, consisting of 31 hospitals and 220 health centers.

Obesity leads to numerous chronic degenerative disorders whose treatments are expensive and exhausting leading to rise in healthcare expenses.

The Ministry of Health (MoH) plans to increase awareness amongst its people about healthy lifestyles and prevention of obesity. The MoH will be implementing public policies to keep its citizens healthy and fit. The ministry plans to organize free exercise sessions in parks and public squares to improve public awareness about physical activity.

More than 2000 bariatric surgeries have been performed to improve the quality of life. At CDMX, “Health Kiosks” have been set up for basic health checkups. In addition to the 220 health centers and 12 clinics, the Supply Center offers care for those who willing to change their lifestyle.

Leading the trend were products related to artificial respiration; massage equipment; instruments and equipment using UV, visible or IR optical radiations; as well as CT Scanners, X-ray machines, radiography/radiotherapy equipment. In number of units, all these categories demonstrated a CAGR of over 20% from 2014 to 2016f.

Download the complete report for more information.

The NIH forms a very prominent part of health system and provide services with high quality services for free. Mexico occupies the 29^th position in scientific production globally and second in Latin America. UNAM is the most important academic center of the country with 4,598 researchers in the National System of Researchers (SNI), followed by the CONACYT research centers with 1,661.

The NIH and the Hospitals of High Specialty have 1,188 SNI researchers. The formation of the “National Consortium for Research and Innovation in Translational Medicine” will allow a greater involvement of UNAM, CONACYT and the health sector to move from basic research to clinical applications and technological developments.

Inter-institutional cooperation becomes the backbone of this consortium. Transnational medicine was defined as medicine/technology where one can transfer from one place to another. The NIH will be conducting most of the clinical research and teaching supported by UNAM and CONACYT.

The consortium will also be supported by trusts, foundations and companies. Within this framework, awards were given to 10 distinguished researchers from the health system.