The IVD Self Testing Market in Australia:
The IVD market for self-testing of various blood levels is a rapidly growing. Part of the reason for this, is that generally, people are becoming more health conscious. Some of the factors relating to this situation, are the various advertising programs that feature the dangers of diabetes and heart disease. In both of these cases, high levels of blood sugar (glucose) and cholesterol are vital factors. Whilst uric acid and hemoglobin levels do not attract the same degree of attention, they are however, no less important to those persons who suffer one or more serious health problems.
The fact that heart disease and diabetes advertisements are regularly shown on television and other media, has raised public awareness to a very high degree. Recently, there has been an initiative suggested within the medical profession, that lifestyle changes, in many people, may well be more important than immediately taking medication. This awareness 
by the general public, has and is leading to many more people wanting to have a general check up for these conditions, as well as keep their glucose and cholesterol levels within the normal range. Self-testing in the home environment is an ideal way of monitoring this.
The second part of the reason for this growth, is the huge awareness surrounding diets and food in general. People are now starting to actively consider diet change, as well as the food ingredients, such as sugars and saturated fats. In both cases, this leads to the situation of glucose and cholesterol levels. Although the issues of uric acid and hemoglobin levels do not seem as important, they are becoming more so, because of our general lifestyle, for example meat can considerably increase the level of the uric acid.
All of the above means that the self-testing of the blood levels mentioned above, both in the home environment and a point-of-care environment, are becoming an increasingly important component in the health area market. While these factors account for the rapid growth of the market, there is a huge potential for an exponential growth, partly due to the huge predicted increase in obesity, which translates to more diabetes sufferers and heart disease problems. The market is certainly dominated by several large players, but there is still plenty of room for the smaller company. One decided advantage, is that the larger players are continuing to increase market awareness through their advertising programs.
From our perspective, we see a huge growth in the point-of-care environment market, which subsequently leads to the end user market. Because this market is so varied and widely distributed, it is an ideal area for a more personalised approach, providing an exciting opportunity for distributors. Obviously product knowledge is of paramount importance here, as is a localised distribution. Given all of the above, as well as the stringent conditions on the sale of medical devices, it is hard to envisage anything but continuous growth.