Remote Patient-Monitoring Devices Offer Precise Treatment

Q: How do your products related to cardiovascular disease support patients dealing with these issues?

A: The priority for Omron’s cardiovascular line is the construction of better communication channels between patients and doctors. Our monitors have evolved from traditional high-blood pressure monitors with no memory card to equipment that is able to record the patient’s at-home behavior and measure the impact of their treatment.

We offer interconnectivity among devices through Bluetooth, transmitting the monitor’s data to the patient’s phone. The information allows the patient to have an understanding of their health. Patients can also share this information with their doctor or a family member. During the pandemic, this feature was especially useful as it allowed both doctors and family to follow-up on chronic or in-treatment processes.

Mexico’s high prevalence of chronic disease and diabetes make it a good target for our monitors. We also understand that Mexico’s socio-economic status may make our solutions unavailable to some patients, so Omron has developed a wide range of blood-pressure monitors that ensure inclusive access to our solutions. We offer a range of monitors from a compact high-tech monitor to a simple, high-quality monitor for at-home care.

We want to make blood-pressure care a routine step for diagnosed and non-diagnosed patients. Omron promotes a preventive healthcare culture where patients create healthier lifestyles for themselves through the use of innovative, technological trends that improve their healthcare and allow them to control their habits.

Q: Omron has a globally important respiratory division. How did this business behave during the COVID-19 pandemic?

A: Omron’s nebulizers were originally targeted to treat chronic respiratory diseases but their use expanded as people began paying more attention to their respiratory system. During the pandemic, the penetration of these products grew significantly due to the concerns people had but also as a result of our steady communication with doctors and commercial partners.

Q: Omron has been awarded the Top 100 Global Innovators Award for the fifth consecutive year in the healthcare category. What led to this distinction?

A: This award reflects Omron’s efforts to improve its technologies. We won it because of the improvements we made to one of our nebulizers, involving technical and in-depth innovations that began with our providers, who comply with Omron’s special quality requirements. The device has a better particle scattering, saves energy, is quieter and comes with interchangeable masks, among other components that provide patients a better experience and a more precise delivery of medication. Our goal is to ensure this innovation is available to both doctors and patients.

Q: How much potential is there in Mexico for Omron’s pain management line?

A: So far, the penetration of these solutions has been slow because knowledge about pain management in Mexico is limited. Our main task is to share the benefits of using these devices, which can provide an immediate improvement in the patient’s discomfort state. Aside from providing relief, our solutions can also help relieve stress, reduce menstrual cramping and support athletes, among others.

Through focus groups, we have identified that the main barrier for our product is poor understanding of the clinical support it provides. Among those who have used it, the majority have experienced its benefits immediately and we are the highest recommended brand by doctors.

Q: Remote patient care is a growing trend in the industry. How is Omron leading the way in this area?

A: With our remote care products, our goal is to transform the common care approach that only holds the doctor responsible for an outcome. Our products help divide the responsibility between doctors and patients by providing the latter with the right monitoring tools. This empowers the patient and creates a virtuous chain that encourages equal healthcare from both sides.

Q: Omron offers its personal devices for everyday checkups through Amazon. Why are these retail options important for the company?

A: This is an example of how Omron is reaching all e-commerce platforms to provide the patient with easier access to our technologies. This also allows the company to understand our user’s behavior.

We focus on traditional sales methods but we also want to be present on e-commerce platforms due to our market studies of different patient profiles in Mexico. Moreover, e-commerce boomed during the pandemic so it made sense. Omron is as user friendly as possible during the purchasing process to support the patient’s decision. The products we have on e-commerce platforms are for diagnosed high-blood pressure patients or users who wish to track their health indicators.

Q: How does Omron include doctors in its solutions development process?

A: We have an area called Omron Academy that is focused on approaching doctors to ensure we are up to date with the latest trends in the field and that our products respond to their needs. We also share the knowledge we have gathered from our work in different countries. We educate doctors on our products and solutions so they can recommend the right tools to their patients.

Omron has alliances with internationally recognized groups of health professionals, including the British and Irish Hypertension Society, which have certified our products and data. The primary goal of these types of alliances is to be able to share the information we have and expand or create educational groups that deliver better results based on scientific data.

Q: How will the medical devices industry benefit from a value-based model?

A: The benefit will come with the evolution of healthier habits, our goal at Omron is “Going for Zero” this means Zero heart attacks / strokes and Zero asthma attacks. Medical devices treat current ailments and there will always be patients with chronic or genetic conditions that will require our devices. However, by improving the overall health of the population through value-based models it may be possible to reduce the burden on hospitals and bring relief to saturated health systems. In this scenario, patients would use a medical device as a diagnostic tool to detect an ailment at an early stage. Consumption of devices would continue to be high but they would be used as a preventive diagnostic rather than a corrective tool. This model creates cost savings for health systems and for patients.

Omron is a global medical devices company backed by research, innovation and industry-approved educational strategies. It specializes in blood pressure monitors, nebulizers, electrotherapy TENS2 devices and other innovative products and services.