Remote Monitoring

Remote Monitoring
Monitoring chronically-ill patients remotely--notably those with diabetes and cardiac problems--seems to be a fairly effective way to keep them relapse-free and out of the hospital.  Rightfully sensing an opportunity, medical device manufacturers have begun introducing new gear which sits in patients' homes (or even gets implanted within their bodies).

But are hospital and medical group IT departments ready to manage this new network frontier?  After all, the data produced by these systems won't do much good if it isn't accessible to all care providers and easy to read. Yes, manufacturers are developing their own applications that collect remotely-generated data, but there's no telling how well those apps fit into your infrastructure. 

In time, these devices could cause as many problems as the influx of PDAs, cell phones and handhelds onto networks, complicated by the fact that end users are, if anything, likely to be even less skilled at keeping their devices safe and online. Meanwhile, getting this data normalized and integrated into clinical workflow may be a serious challenge. Managing and servicing home-based devices will be even trickier. After all, these systems are a waste of money if the patients don't know how to use them.

To avoid getting caught up short, I'd argue, health IT departments need to begin thinking about the core functions a telemonitoring platform needs to have. This is a good time to find out just how often physicians would want this kind of data displayed, how often they'd like to be notified of changes in key stats and what other information they'd like to review at the same time. Also, why not ask nurses who are already visiting with patients what data, applications and tools will help make their visits more efficient? Of course, you can also look at ways to integrate the data with your EMR if you have one.

At the same time, you can start looking at how you'll deal with connected devices in the field, including, perhaps, whether you'll need to contract with an outsourced on-site support provider or call center. If your help desk is stressed already, there's no way you'll be able to handle computer-challenged seniors puzzled by their electronic blood pressure cuff or new-fangled glucose monitor.

If you aren't satisfied with the technology out there, you can even do some pioneering yourself. If you're considering a telemonitoring pilot, why not reach out to a local biotech firm and pitch some device specs that make sense? This could be a relatively cheap way to get in some R&D.  (Heck, you could even forge a joint venture and make some money on the deal.)  Hey, wouldn't it be nice if your next IT investment paid for itself? -Anne

P.S.  This week I'm checking in on critical hospital industry issues at the Voluntary Hospital Association's annual Leadership Conference in Denver. If you're going to be there, say hello!

P.P.S.  Next Monday is Memorial Day, so we'll be publishing on Tuesday the 29th instead.  Have a good holiday!

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