Trending Topics on Health Research in 2026
Health research is undergoing a rapid transformation, driven by the convergence of digital technologies, data-driven healthcare models, and changing patient behaviours. From continuous health monitoring through connected devices to the growing reliance on telemedicine and mobile health applications, researchers now have unprecedented opportunities to study how technology influences healthcare access, decision-making, and outcomes.
These emerging domains also raise important questions around adoption, usability, trust, ethics, and regulation – making them highly suitable for survey-based, behavioural, and mixed-method in academic research. This blog highlights some of the most trending topics in contemporary health research that are gaining attention across medical, public health, psychology, management, and information systems disciplines, offering rich scope for primary data collection, hypothesis testing, and impactful academic contributions.
1. Body Area Networks in Healthcare Monitoring and Diagnosis
Body Area Networks, often referred to as BANs, represent a revolutionary concept in healthcare and communication. They are small-scale networks of wearable, implantable, or portable sensors placed on, in, or around the body. They seamlessly integrate wearable devices and sensors into our daily lives, enabling real-time monitoring of various physiological parameters and fostering a more connected world.
The purpose of studying this topic of health research is to gather insights into the usage, preferences, and perceptions of BANs among individuals.
Example Survey Questions:
- Do you think using body area networks will improve the quality of life?
- Do you believe it is easy to use BAN devices?
Live Example:
This research team from IIM Rohtak utilised online survey panel to recruit participants from across India for their health research study on various health-tech devices. A total of 300 participants shared their opinion.
2. Patient Adoption and Acceptance of Telemedicine Services
Telemedicine is a general term that covers all of the ways you and healthcare professionals can use technology to communicate without being in the same room. It includes phone calls, video chats, emails, and text messages.
The rise in telemedicine apps like – Practo, Lybrate, mfine, 1mg, Apollo 24/7, Medibuddy, etc, has given opportunity to health researchers and businesses to study the convenience and penetration of these services.
Example Survey Questions:
- Have telemedicine apps/services met your expectations?
- Do you think it is risky to provide personal health information to doctors on telemedicine platforms?
Live Example:
This team from IIM Sambalpur surveyed 250+ Indian citizens from 30+ Tier 1 & 2 cities via survey tool to study consumer acceptance, trust and hesitation towards using such apps, for this topic on health research.
3. Growth and Impact of Mobile Health (mHealth) Technologies
Another rapidly evolving field of health research. Mobile health (mHealth) is the use of mobile devices, apps, wearable sensors, and wireless technologies to support healthcare delivery, disease monitoring, and health education.
Examples include fitness trackers, telemedicine apps, mobile diagnostics, medication reminders, chronic disease management apps, and mental health platforms.
Example Survey Questions:
- The currently available mobile health devices/apps are helpful?
- The mHealth devices are easier to use than conventional healthcare devices?
Research Tip:
Run comparative study among US, European and Indian citizens who frequently utilise healthcare services, and patients on their perception and acceptance towards use of health-tech.
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4. Smart Wearable Devices and Their Role in Preventive Healthcare
Smart wearable devices are another hot topic of research in healthcare and health-tech. They are portable electronic gadgets that can be worn on the body, typically as accessories or clothing items, and are designed to enhance and simplify our everyday activities. They offer a wide range of functionalities, such as monitoring health and fitness, providing notifications, facilitating communication, and even enabling entertainment.
Example Survey Questions:
- Do you think smart wearable device use is clear and understandable
- Learning to use smart wearable device is easy for me
ThinkSurvey Tip:
Run data collection across country and target to collect opinions of 1000+ participants, preferably tech-savvy Indian citizens. Gather insights into the usage, preferences, and perceptions of smart wearable devices. You may also combine your study with the knowledge and usage of AI in healthcare. Read in detail here – trending topics of research in artificial intelligence.
5. Consumer Decision-Making in Healthcare E-Commerce
The rapid growth of online pharmacies and healthcare e-commerce platforms has transformed how consumers search for, evaluate, and purchase medicines. Beyond pricing and convenience, recent health research focuses on digital trust, perceived safety, regulatory awareness, information transparency, and ethical selling practices in online medicine platforms.
Example Survey Questions:
- Do you trust online pharmacies to provide genuine and safe medicines?
- Do online pharmacies provide sufficient information to make informed medicine choices?
Live Example:
This research team studied pan-India selling practices by online medicine websites during covid lockdown time in their paper consumer vulnerability.
How to Select the Right Topic in Health Research
Selecting the right topic in health research is often the first major challenge for academic researchers, PhD scholars, and early-career professionals. With rapidly evolving healthcare systems, digital health technologies, and patient-centric models, choosing a topic that is both relevant and feasible requires a structured approach.
Begin by conducting a focused literature review across recent health research journals, review papers, and global health reports. This helps identify emerging health research trends, such as preventive healthcare, mental health awareness, digital therapeutics, or wearable health technologies. Shortlist topics that genuinely interest you, as motivation plays a crucial role in sustaining long-term research efforts.
Next, identify research gaps by closely examining the discussion and limitation sections of recent studies. These gaps often highlight unanswered questions in public health research, clinical research, or healthcare behaviour studies. Once shortlisted, assess feasibility by evaluating data availability, sample accessibility, time constraints, and methodological requirements.
Before finalizing your topic, seek feedback from mentors or peers to refine your research question and validate its relevance. Finally, design your study by outlining objectives, survey instruments, and data collection methods. A well-chosen health research topic balances novelty, societal relevance, and practical execution—laying the foundation for meaningful academic contribution.
How ThinkSurvey enables Health Researchers and Health-tech Start-ups
Many researchers, start-ups and SMEs often feel stuck at critical stages of market research process:
“I have the idea, but don’t know where to start.”
“I have the questionnaire ready, but I’m stuck at the data collection stage.”
If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Conducting impactful health research in India requires two essentials:
- A well-represented target audience that reflects diverse communities.
- Best data collection agency for reliable data collection methods to capture honest healthcare attitudes.
At ThinkSurvey, we bridge this gap for researchers. Our team of experts make it easy to gather high-quality responses across states, age groups, and income brackets.
Why Choose ThinkSurvey for Data Collection in Health Research?
- Audience Panel – Access a pre-screened panel of Indian consumers from all states, ensuring your study reflects real-world eating habits and market diversity.
- Wide Demographics – Students, working professionals, homemakers, business owners — with responses balanced by gender, age, income, and region.
- Expert Research Team – Specialists who understand both academic health research methodologies and market validation studies.
- Scalable Data Collection – From 50 to 5,000+ responses, tailored to your project scope — whether it’s concept testing, consumer surveys, or persona mapping.
- Timely Delivery – End-to-end project execution delivered within the agreed timeline.
- Dedicated Support – A single point of contact guides you from survey design to data analysis.
With ThinkSurvey, you don’t just collect responses — you generate actionable insights into consumer behaviour, health-tech adoption, and lifestyle trends that can power both academic studies and business strategies.
