Integrating data from wearables into clinical practice has created barriers that are “mostly structural, not motivational,’’ according to the newly-released 2026 International Physician Survey on Consumer Wearables.

The study found that the gap from intention to action are caused by physician trust of data from wearables and missing clinical workflows. Closing that gap will require coordinated investment in structural conditions for physicians, not efforts to build awareness or capitalize on interest that already exists, the study said.

Respondent physicians show similar patterns of exposure to, and interest in, wearable data.  Further, the study found that most physicians are already reviewing wearable data in some capacity, and only 3% reported never reviewing any wearable data. The most commonly reviewed data categories are broadly similar across countries: heart physiology, activity and function, biometric/physical events and alerts, and sleep.

There was a similar pattern found in physician interest: Most use wearables personally, and large majorities both within and outside the United States reported that wearable data offers at least some clinical advantage for patient care.

Patients are not yet regularly requesting review of data from their wearables, but when they ask, physicians typically respond, according to the survey. While visible, patient-initiated engagement with wearable data is not yet routine. Fewer than one in four physicians reported weekly patient requests across any of the four measured demand indicators.

Patient demand is seen as “one of the most reliable levers for closing the gap between exposure to and integration of data from wearables,’’ regardless of country, specialty, or structural environment.

The integration of data from wearables into clinical practice/workflows is in the early stage, and countries differ in how far along that transition is. The share of physicians integrating wearable data into clinical workflows is lower or at 6% in any country, but how countries move toward integration depend on a country’s structural conditions.

For example, the survey found that Germany and Spain have the largest reported near-term pipelines of physicians ready to integrate these data, whereas fewer than one in five physicians in Canada or the United Kingdom indicated a high likelihood of integration in the next 12 months.

Reimbursement pathways, feasibility, and concerns all differ meaningfully by country, and those differences explain more of the variation in integration rates than physician interest does. “Structural factors, including payment mechanisms, regulatory frameworks, and workflow infrastructure, shape what is possible even when intention is present,’’ the study noted. “Country-level differences reveal that beyond payment structures, physician enthusiasm, concerns about legal liability, and other factors influence integration into clinical practice.”

The 2026 International Physician Survey on Consumer Wearables findings are based on responses from 2,222 physicians surveyed from January through early March 2026, spanning the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The survey examined current physician attitudes and behaviors, barriers to integrating data from wearables into clinical practice, trust in device data, reimbursement dynamics, and structural factors that distinguish countries where integration is advancing from those where it remains stalled. The survey included lifestyle wearables (e.g., Apple Watch, Oura Ring, WHOOP, Garmin, Fitbit) and over-the-counter biosensors (e.g., Dexcom Stelo, Abbott Lingo). Prescription medical devices, such as continuous glucose monitors and clinical diagnostic tools (e.g., mobile cardiac telemetry, home sleep apnea tests), were excluded.