THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF SMART PHONE APPS IN HOME CARE OF DIABETES

Abstract

Millions of people around the world today use the mobile app technology to provide convenience for themselves in their daily routines, such as booking a flight, booking a taxi, or paying a traffic ticket. In 2016, the global mobile internet user penetration expanded to almost half of the World’s population with an average time spent assessing online content from a mobile device app exceeding 185 minutes a day. The healthcare industry, has not shown any naivety in the adoption of this technology as there are hundreds of mobile apps designed to help patients manage their disease conditions at home, including chronic diseases like Diabetes. It is unclear if these apps provide any cost saving benefit or if the giant tech companies in Silicon Valley are just making a fortune out of this technology.