Health apps and telemedicine

How popular are they?

Health apps and telemedicine services have seen a massive surge in popularity and demand, especially amid the pandemic as the focus drastically shifted towards health and fitness. This report delves into people’s opinions about the concept of digital health tracking and its possible demerits.

From general health and wellness to health management, the mobile health app market has seen significant growth in the past few years. Even telemedicine, which was largely underutilized, recently saw a sudden surge in demand as in-person medical visits dropped amid lockdowns and infection fears.

While there is no doubt that health apps help people improve their lives and well-being, there is also the persistent threat of one’s data being misused. Most of these apps not only collect a significant amount of sensitive data and personal user information like contact details, location, and app cookies, but they also share them with third-party entities like Facebook and Google, who use it further for their benefit. With the many pros and cons, how trusting are people of such digital health services? Piplsay polled 30,960 Americans and 9,190 Britons to get some insights. Here is a summary of what we found:

Other Insights

• • 56% of men in the US have health apps on their phones as compared to 44% of women
  • 39% of Millennials in the US have read the privacy policies of their health apps closely as compared to 37% of Gen Xers and 24% of Gen Zers
  • Similarly, 40% of Millennials in the UK have read the privacy policies of their health apps closely as compared to 31% of Gen Xers and 29% of Gen Zers
  • 65% of Gen Xers in the US have used telemedicine services amid the pandemic as compared to 38% in the UK

Survey Methodology: This Piplsay survey was conducted nationwide in the US and the UK from June 21-22, 2021. We received 30,960 and 9,190 online responses respectively from individuals aged 18 years and older.