Telehealth Monitoring Works!
posted on February 16, 2012
Rina Schnaufer, RN and Joetta DeVeronica, RN
Telemonitoring systems, such as Cardiocom®, can help home health care providers address a large percentage of our patient population such as those with Hypertension, Heart Failure, COPD, Asthma, CAD, and/or Diabetes, amongst other possibilities.
The Cardiocom® systems are installed in the patient’s home for remote monitoring. Information is sent through a telephone or internet line and then we are able to monitor vital signs along with the symptoms of the disease. Reminders can also be sent to patients and calls made to help to improve overall patient compliance with treatment care plans. The goal is to identify symptomatic patients and intervene early to prevent unnecessary hospitalizations, as well as to support health outcomes, interdisciplinary communication, and optimize care.
Below is an example of how Telehealth monitoring can connect patients, home care clinicians, and their physicians to their daily status.
This patient was refe
rred to our Telehealth Team for a diagnosis of heart failure. After several days of monitoring, we noticed a trend of elevated blood pressures in the morning. The blood pressures would range from 200's/100's in the morning to normal readings in the afternoon (per HCR standard parameter guidelines, normal BP readings are 160/80). The patient and physician were unaware this was happening. After contacting the physician and providing the Telehealth reports, the physician was able to make the necessary medication changes and the patient's blood pressures are now stable.
Telehealth provides your patients with the opportunity to be connected to their medical team daily. This gives patients and families a sense of security, confidence, and independence. Telehealth also provides for clinicians a regularly scheduled report to support your clinical assessments. Telehealth monitoring is an important part of a patient's home health care plan and provides valuable information to the entire healthcare team and the patient on a daily basis.
Many more HCR patients could benefit from Telehealth; the above is only one example of many. There have been numerous times when Telehealth has been an important and helpful tool providing daily monitoring and can help to truly provide thorough quality care. To learn more information about HCR’s Telehealth Program or to inquire directly, click here.
