Remote patient monitoring involves digital health assessments. Healthcare workers utilize special equipment to monitor patients’ daily activities, symptoms, and vital signs, including blood pressure, heart rate, blood oxygen level, and cholesterol. Wearable sensors, smartphone applications, and telemedicine technologies provide remote monitoring.
Remote monitoring also evaluates chronic or acute disorders, infectious infections, telemedicine, outpatient care, etc. After COVID-19, remote monitoring has followed SOPS and social distancing. It has also improved patient outcomes, reduced medical costs, and boosted clinical efficiency.
As part of healthcare delivery, remote monitoring entails the use of various equipment and technologies to collect and send information on a patient’s health status. Healthcare professionals examine the data so they can make well-informed medical decisions and execute interventions as necessary. Remote monitoring facilitates direct patient-provider communication and can raise the standard, effectiveness, and affordability of healthcare.
Potential Advantages of Remote Patient Monitoring
- Better Results for Patients:
Health data from a patient can be monitored remotely around the clock, allowing for the rapid identification and treatment of any emerging problems. This may lead to better patient outcomes, fewer problems, and quicker healing.
- Better clinical efficiency and care quality:
Medical professionals can watch patient data online, which can help streamline clinical workflows and make clinical decisions and interventions more timely, accurate, and effective.
- More patient involvement and control:
Remote monitoring enables patients to participate in the self-management of chronic diseases, monitor their vital signs, and get information about their health concerns. This increases patient involvement and empowerment overall.
- Lower medical expenses:
Proactive interventions and care management made possible by remote monitoring can minimize healthcare expenses by avoiding unnecessary medical procedures and hospitalizations and saving money on otherwise pricey doctor visits.
Examples of Remote Patient Monitoring in Healthcare
Remote patient monitoring (RPM) technologies enable doctors to monitor, report, and analyze their patient’s acute or chronic diseases outside the hospital or clinical setting. They enable the practitioner to understand the patient’s disease state and take preventative clinical actions.
Devices for remote patient monitoring encourage daily interaction and a greater understanding of a patient’s health. Patients are more likely to have long-lasting, beneficial health outcomes when they regularly engage with their health using RPM devices.
There are four notable instances of remote patient monitoring in cardiology.
- Hypertension control
Hypertension is a severe health issue, as evidenced by some startling data. Unfortunately, hypertension is poorly managed in roughly 75% of adult patients. About half a million Americans lost their lives in 2018 due to hypertension being a primary or contributing factor.
The only reliable technique to determine whether many patients have high blood pressure is to measure the blood pressure because patients with hypertension are typically mostly or entirely asymptomatic. That is usually done using a monitor. The monitor’s operation technique is quite simple and adequately suited for RPM.
Patients usually need to start the accompanying monitoring device, which measures and sends blood pressure data, after putting a cuff on their arm.
- Medicine control and titration
High blood pressure patients often get continuing, lifelong treatment that includes one or more drugs. There are over ten different classes of blood pressure drugs. Two medications often work better than one to control blood pressure, and sometimes additional medications are needed to reach objectives.
Considering these elements, high blood pressure drug regimens typically experience regular, occasionally significant adjustments. Practitioners want quick and precise hypertension data to ensure suitable and safe modifications best. The most efficient way to continuously convey such crucial information to cardiologists is to give patients a remote monitoring gadget.
- Congestive heart failure weight assessment
A patient’s body may retain fluid if there is a steady or rapid increase in daily weight. One typical sign of heart failure is fluid retention, which can happen in the lungs, kidneys, belly, legs, and feet. But if not consistently checked, such weight gain and accompanying fluid retention might be easily ignored.
Patients have been reported to gain up to 10 pounds of “extra” fluid weight before exhibiting any symptoms other than weight gain, such as feeling ill or swollen.
Cardiologists are notified when cardiac decompensation occurs by daily remote weight monitoring utilizing a connected or smart scale, enabling quick action to help the patient’s condition and reduce the need for hospitalization or urgent treatment.
Weight gain is generally the first sign of heart failure. Hence, the American Heart Association recommends daily weight monitoring for CHF management.
Pulmonologists provide two examples of remote patient monitoring, one of which encompasses numerous conditions, and a third example of remote patient monitoring that is commonly offered.
- Management of COPD
It is estimated that millions more Americans have COPD but are unaware of it. Approximately 16 million Americans have the condition. Although COPD may not be cured, it can be controlled and treated. Pulmonologists collaborate with their patients to create a treatment strategy that may include medication, oxygen therapy, rehabilitation, and emotional and social support.
Pulmonologists can better manage COPD efficiently and on time using remote patient monitoring. This results in improvements in decision support and patient adherence to instructions and suggestions.
While remote COPD monitoring is a helpful service in normal times, it has become much more valuable for COPD patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. When patients undergo testing and measurement of their lung function, pulmonologists can provide virtual support via a remote electronic respiratory monitor without risking exposure to the new coronavirus.
- Treatment of Asthma
Asthma affects approximately 8% of all individuals, according to the statistics. Although asthma cannot yet be cured, it is very manageable. In collaboration with their patients, pulmonologists can create a management strategy that includes physical activity, measures to avoid triggers, medication, and other tactics like remote patient monitoring.
The utilization of an electronic respiratory monitor is expanding among asthma patients to support them and improve their asthma management. Studies show that ongoing monitoring of interventions is directly linked to better asthma control, more days without symptoms, and less need for rescue medicine.
- Assisted Living Ambient Technologies
The term “Ambient Assisted Living” (AAL) describes the implementation of sensor-based technologies that track patients at home and report data to healthcare practitioners, such as medication compliance, movement, and fall detection. These technologies use sensors that monitor everyday actions like opening the refrigerator or shoe cabinets or noticing movement in the space.
While keeping patients secure and under observation, AAL technology can lessen the need for residential care and ease the stress on caregivers.
- Medication Tracking Devices
Another crucial component of remote monitoring is keeping track of medication compliance. Electronic devices for tracking medication adherence can provide reminders and keep track of patients’ drug intake in real time, which helps with compliance and medication accuracy. These gadgets can measure medication adherence, remind patients when to take their doses, and inform healthcare professionals about their drug-taking habits.
Conclusion
The use of remote monitoring, a powerful technology, has revolutionized how we manage and keep an eye on various systems and activities. We can follow and analyze data in real-time using remote monitoring, spot possible issues before they arise, and make wise decisions based on data-driven insights.
Numerous industries, including healthcare, energy, industry, and transportation, have used the technology considerably. Wearable health monitors, smart home gadgets, business sensors, and GPS tracking systems are a few examples of remote monitoring systems. Future remote monitoring systems will likely be even more cutting-edge as technology advances.