Telefónica Acquires Controlling Stake in Axismed

Gestión de Salud

The global digital innovation arm of Telefónica has acquired a controlling stake in Axismed, Brazil’s largest chronic care management company. The deal, which was concluded at the end of last year, will enable Telefónica Group to accelerate the development of a complete end-to-end service proposition in the fast growing Brazilian e-health market, targeting private healthcare providers, corporate customers as well as the 90 million Vivo customers in Brazil.

According to data from the National Health Agency (ANS), 48 million people in Brazil have a supplementary private healthcare plan. Of this, 30%, or 14.4 million, are chronic patients. These figures demonstrate the huge potential of this market, which, as it grows, will improve quality of life for millions of patients.

The deal

The combination of Axismed’s healthcare know how with Telefonica Group’s technology expertise will enable the creation of innovative services for health plan providers and the corporate market.

Patient care will be able to adopt a multi-channel platform to contact users through mobile applications, Internet, SMS, Web, video conference and other means. The platform will enable, within the first year, the transmission of biometrics data through connected devices in the patient’s house, which will measure glucose levels, blood pressure and other physiological indicators, based on each individual’s specific case.

And the next stage will see Telefonica Group work with Axismed to expand its proposition into new countries and also to identify opportunities within the Brazilian B2C market, leveraging Vivo’s 90 million customer base.

Quality of life improvement

Between 80% and 93% of the chronic patients served by Axismed have adhered to the program, which reduces emergency room visits by 66% and hospital stays by up to 50%, benefiting both patients and companies. Since chronic diseases have no cure, Axismed’s work aims to ensure that patients maintain a normal and controlled life with a lower risk of complications.

“The deal is part of the company’s global strategy to focus on the ehealth market, which is one of a number of areas in which Telefónica Digital is developing new innovative products and services,” commented Antonio Carlos Valente, CEO of the Telefónica Group in Brazil. “With our connection solutions and the Vivo 3G networks, which is unparalleled in Brazil, monitoring chronic patients could reach significant numbers of people in over 3,000 cities nationwide,” said Valente.

“The market potential for remote patient management in Brazil is significant,” said Matthew Key, Chief Executive of Telefónica Digital. “The structure, the potential and the maturity of the market and the important role of private health care providers means that Brazil could take a lead globally in rolling out these services. With Axismed, we can deliver a complete end-to-end solution to the market, helping to improve quality of life for patients with chronic conditions.”

Fabio Abreu, Chief Executive of Axismed, commented, “The main idea behind all services offered by Axismed is a win-win solution in the health care sector. For instance, our services help chronic patients take care of their health status, preventing ER visits and hospitalization, help physicians have better adherence from patients for their prescriptions and orientations, consequently reducing health care costs significantly for the health plan and peace of mind for the patient and their family through constant support.”

Source: Telefónica Digital 

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