Technological advancements in the field of medicine are the primary reason for saving millions of lives of patients and helping them cope with painful medical conditions. The innovations in the field of medicine and healthcare bring relief and smiles to numerous patients and their families.
Transforming healthcare
Remote patient monitoring or RPM systems is one such tool that is addressing the healthcare needs of patients who need a consistent review of their vitals and other biometric data. Patients who are ambulatory, but are not admitted into a hospital for any reason, still need a proper review of their health condition.
In absence of hospital care, the patients using wearable RPM devices are still enjoying constant monitoring of their health-related data like blood pressure, glucose levels, etc wearable devices that transmit or relay the information to the telehealth services hub.
Affordable solutions
Remote patient monitoring or RPM systems are affordable solutions that can help deliver patient care without exacerbating healthcare costs, even if you have them custom-made from a healthcare IT company. These devices transmit data on a real-time basis. Any anomalies related to the patient’s health are detected and timely intervention to revert to health is facilitated.
Features of RPM systems to be effective
- Cost-efficiency
The essence of telehealth and remote patient monitoring is to lower the rising costs and pressures on the healthcare system. It is apparent the RPM device has to be affordable for all patients and should help in lowering costs
- Reduce admissions
Unless RPMs are effective in sensing the health parameters of the patient and relay the data through electronic transmission without delay, early intervention, and timely backup cannot be provided. Only effective RPMs help in reducing repeat admissions. Whenever there is an episode, it is detected early on and immediate steps are taken to help patients feel better and avoid adverse outcomes or even hospital admissions.
- Operational efficiency
Only efficient RPM systems can reduce hospital occupancy. When patients are monitored consistently through telehealth monitors, immediate steps are taken to engage patients and their family members to manage their health. With the automation of routine tasks like recording vitals, sending alerts, and medication reminders, the RPM system eases the workflow for the staff.
- Improved scores
With better patient engagement and outcomes, the quality of the patient care provided by a hospital improves. It translates to better HEDIS scores and is a prestigious moment for the healthcare facility
What are the common applications of RPM systems?
Remote patient monitoring has removed the anomalies of reactive care where the action is taken only after the stage has crossed where the health was still in a manageable pattern. In chronic diseases like heart and COPD patient’s cases, it is inadvertent that the quality of life is normal as long as their core vitals are in acceptable ranges. Many ailments can be averted from flaring up through a basic diet, and exercise regimen.
Here are a few applications of the RPM system that can help save patients from falling more sick by taking a corrective recourse:
- Heart ailments
Patients with heart ailments cannot risk their blood pressure shooting up. They require continuous monitoring of their blood pressure, pulse rate, weight, and other vitals. If the reading crosses the normal range, an alarm goes off through the RPM system, alerting the telehealth nurse, and the requisite care team takes the necessary steps to stabilize the patient.
- Diabetes
Patients suffering from diabetes and high levels of blood glucose suffer from multiple problems if they develop any other complication. Often diabetes is the underlying reason why any other complication goes undetected till the point it can not be reversed. With RPM devices patients suffering from chronic diabetes can check their blood glucose levels and take immediate steps to take their medication or eat something if it goes above the normal range.
Summing up:
Care outcomes improve when patients are engaged in the process of looking up their important vital readings. With the help of RPM systems, telehealth practitioners can showcase to their patients how to read their health data. When health readings are not in a normal range, patients proactively take measures to bring them back to acceptable levels. When a patient’s engagement levels increase, healthcare facilities nurture a diaspora of healthy communities through positive reinforcements.
